UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
AT LOS ANGELES
THE PROLONGATION
OF LIFE
OPTIMISTIC STUDIES
ELIE METCHNIKOFF
SUB-DIRECTOR OF THE PASTEUR INSTITUTE, PARIS
THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION
EDITED BY
P. CHALMERS MITCHELL
M.A., D.Sc. OXON., HON. LL.D., F.R.S.
Secretary of the Zoological Society of London : Corresponding Member
of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia
G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS
NEW YORK & LONDON
Ifcnicfeerbocfcer press
,7 25
wr
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION
ELIE METCHNIKOFF has carried on the high purpose of the
Pasteur Institute by devoting his genius for biological
inquiry to the service of man. Some years ago, in a series
of Essays which were intended to be provocative and
educational, rather than expository, he described the direc-
tion towards which he was pressing. I had the privilege
of introducing these Essays to English readers under the
title The Nature of Man, ai^tudy in Optimistic Philosophy.
In that volume, Professor Metchnikoff recounted how
sentient man, regarding his lot in the world, had found it
evil. Philosophy and literature,>religion and folk-lore, in
ancient and modern times have been deeply tinged with
pessimism. The source of these gloomy views lies in the
nature of man itself. Man has inherited a constitution
from remote animal ancestors, and every part of his struc-
ture, physical, mental and emotional, is a complex legacy
of diverse elements. Possibly at one time each quality
had its purpose as an adaptation to environment, but, as
man, in the course of his evolution, and the environment
itself have changed, the old harmonious intercourse
between quality and circumstances has been dislocated in
many cases. And so there have come into existence many
instances of what the Professor calls " disharmony," per-
sistences of structures, or habits, or desires that are no
vi EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION
longer useful, but even harmful, failures of parallelism
between the growth, maturity and decay of physical and
mental qualities and so forth. Religions and philosophies
alike have failed to find remedies or efficient anodynes for
these evils of existence, and, so far, man is justified of
his historical and actual pessimism.
Metchnikoff, however, was able to proclaim himself an
optimist, and found, in biological science, for the present
generation a hope, or, at the least, an end towards which to
work, and for future generations a possible achievement of
that hope. Three chief evils that hang over us are disease,
old age, and death. Modern science has already made vast
strides towards the destruction of disease, and no one has
more right to be listened to than a leader of the Pasteur
Institute when he asserts his confidence that rational
hygiene and preventive measures will ultimately rid man-
kind of disease. The scientific investigation of old age
shows that senility is nearly always precocious and that its
disabilities and miseries are for the most part due to pre-
ventable causes. Metchnikoff showed years ago that there
exists in the human body a number of cells known gener-
ally as phagocytes, the chief function of which is to devour
intruding microbes. But these guardians of the body may
turn into its deadly enemies by destroying and replacing
the higher elements, the specific cells of the different tissues.
The physical mechanism of senility appears to be in large
measure the result of this process. Certain substances,
notably the poisons of such diseases as syphilis and the
products of intestinal putrefaction, stimulate the activity
of the phagocytes and so encourage their encroachment on
the higher tissues. The first business of science is to re-
move these handicaps in favour of the wandering, cor-
roding phagocytes. Specific poisons must be dealt with
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION vii
separately, by prevention or treatment, and it is well known
that Metchnikoff has made great advances in that direc-
tion. The most striking practical side of The Nature of
Man, however, was the discussion of the cause and pre-
vention of intestinal putrefaction. Metchnikoff believes that
the inherited structure of the human large intestine and the
customary diet of civilised man are specially favourable to
the multiplication of a large number of microbes that cause
putrefaction. The avoidance of alcohol and the rigid ex-
clusion from diet of foods that favour putrefaction, such as
rich meats, and of raw or badly cooked substances con-
taining microbes, do much to remedy the evils. But the
special introduction of the microbes which cause lactic fer-
mentation has the effect of inhibiting putrefaction. By
such measures Metchnikoff believes that life \vill be greatly
prolonged and that the chief evils of senility will be
avoided. It may take many generations before the final
result is attained, but, in the meantime, great amelioration
is possible. There remains the last enemy, death. Metch-
nikoff shows that in the vast majority of cases death is not
"natural," but comes from accidental and preventable
causes. When diseases have been suppressed and the
course of life regulated by scientific hygiene, it is probable
that death would come only at an extreme old age. Metch-
nikoff thinks that there is evidence enough at least to
suggest that when death comes in its natural place at the
end of the normal cycle of life, -it would be robbed of its
terrors and be accepted as gratefully as any other part of
the cycle of life. He thinks, in fact, that the instinct of life
would be replaced by an instinct of death. v
Metchnikoff's suggestion, then, was that science should
be encouraged and helped in every possible way in its task
of removing the diseases and habits that now prevent
viii EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION
human life from running its normal course, and his belief
is that were the task accomplished, the great causes of
pessimism would disappear.
In this new volume, The Prolongation of Life, the
main thesis is carried further, and a number of criti-
cisms and objections are met. The latter, so far as they
relate to technical details, I need say nothing of here, as
Metchnikoff and his staff at the Pasteur Institute are the
most skilled existing technical experts on these matters,
but I cannot refrain from a word of comment on the bril-
liant treatment of the objection to the suggested ameliora-
tion of human life that it considered only the individual
and neglected the just subordination of the individual to
society. In the sixth Part of this volume, Metchnikoff dis-
cusses the relation of the individual to the species, society
or colony, from the general point of view of comparative
biology, and shows that as organisation progresses, the
integrity of the individual becomes increasingly important.
Were orthobiosis, the normal cycle of life, attained by
human beings, there still would be room for specialisation
of individuals and for differentiation of the functions of
individuals in society, but instead of the specialisation and
differentiation making individuals incomplete throughout
their whole lives, they would be distributed over the
different periods of the life of each individual.
As these lines are intended to be an introduction, not a
commentary, I will now leave the reader to follow the
argument in the book itself.
P. CHALMERS MITCHELL.
LONDON, August, 1907.
PREFACE
IT is now four years since I wrote a volume, the English
translation of which was called The Nature of Man, and
which was an attempt to frame an optimistic conception of
life. Human nature contains many very complex elements,
due to its animal ancestry, and amongst these there are
some disharmonies to which our misfortunes are due, but
also elements which afford the promise of a happier human
life.
My views have encountered many objections, and I wish
to reply to some of these by developing my arguments.
This was my first task in this book, but I have also brought
together a series of studies on problems which closely
affect my theory.
Although it has been possible to support my conception
by new facts, some of which have been established by my
fellow-workers, others by myself, there still remain many
sides of the subject where it is necessary to fall back on
hypotheses. I have accepted such imperfections instead of
delaying the publication of my book.
Even at present there are critics who regard me as in-
capable of sane and logical reasoning. The longer I post-
pone publication, the longer would I leave the field open
to such persons. What I have been saying may serve also
x PREFACE
as a reply to the remark of one of my critics, that my ideas
have been " suggested by self-preoccupation."
It is, of course, quite natural that a biologist whose atten-
tion had been aroused by noticing in his own case the
phenomena of precocious old age should turn to study the
causes of it. But it is equally plain that such a study could
give no hope of resisting the decay of an organism which
had already for many years been growing old. If the ideas
which have come out of my work bring about some modi-
fication in the onset of old age, the advantage can be
gained only by those who are still young, and who will
be at the pains to follow the new knowledge. This volume,
in fact, like my earlier one on the "Nature of Man," is
directed much more to the new generation than to that
which has already been subjected to the influence of the
factors which produce precocious old age. I think that
thus the experience of those who have lived and worked
for long can be made of service to others.
As this volume is a sequel to The Nature of Man, I
have tried as much as possible to avoid repetition of what
was fully explained in the earlier volume.
Here I bring together the results of work that has been
done since the publication of The Nature of Man. Some
of the chapters relate to subjects upon which I have lec-
tured, or which, in a different form, have been printed
before. For instance, the section on the psychic rudiments
of man appeared in the Bulletin de I' Institut general psycho-
logique of 1904, the essay on Animal Societies was pub-
lished in the Revue Philomatique de Bordeaux et du Sud-
Ouest of 1904, and in the Revue of J. Finot of the same
year, whilst a German translation of it appeared in Prof.
Ostwald's Annalen der Naturphilosophie. The chapter
on soured milk first appeared as a pamphlet, published in
PREFACE xi
1905. The substance of my views on natural death was
published in June last in " Harper's Monthly Magazine"
of New York, while the chapter on natural death in animals
appeared in the first number of the Revue du Mois for
1906.
I have to thank most sincerely the friends and pupils
who have helped me by bringing before me new facts, or
other materials; the names of these will appear in their
proper places in the volume. I have not mentioned by
name, however, Dr. J. Goldschmidt, whose continual en-
couragement and practical sympathy have made my work
much easier.
Finally, my special thanks are due to Drs. Em. Roux
and Burnet, and M. Mesnil, who have been so good as to
correct my manuscript and the proofs of this volume.
E. M.
PARIS, Feb. 7, 1907.
CONTENTS
PAGE
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION v v
PREFACE ix
PART I
THE INVESTIGATION OF OLD AGE
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY
Treatment of old people in uncivilised countries. Assassination
of old people in civilised countries. Suicide of old people.
Public assistance in old age. Centenarians. Mme.
Robineau, a lady of 106 years of age. Principal characters
of old age. Examples of old mammals. Old birds and
tortoises. Hypothesis of senile degeneration in the lower
animals I
II
THEORIES OF THE CAUSATION OF SENILITY
Hypothesis of the causation of senility. Senility cannot be
attributed to the cessation of the power of reproduction of
the cells of the body. Growth of the hair and the nails in
old age. Inner mechanism of the senescence of the tissues.
Notwithstanding the criticisms of M. Marinesco, the
neuronophags are true phagocytes. The whitening of hair,
and the destruction of nerve cells as arguments against a
theory of old age based on the failure of the reproductive
powers of the cells ......... 15
III
MECHANISM OF SENILITY
Action of the macrophags in destroying the higher cells.
Senile degeneration of the muscular fibres. Atrophy of the
CONTENTS
PAGE
skeleton. Atheroma and arterial sclerosis. Theory that
Old Age is due to alteration in the vascular glands.
Organic tissues that resist phagocytosis .... 25
PART II
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
I
THEORIES OF LONGEVITY
Relation between longevity and size. Longevity and the period
of growth. Longevity and the doubling in weight after
birth. Longevity and rate of reproduction. Probable rela-
tions between longevity and the nature of the food . . 39
II
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
Longevity in the lower animals. Instances of long life in sea-
anemones and other vertebrates. Duration of life of insects.
Duration of life of " cold-blooded " vertebrates. Dura-
tion of life of birds. Duration of life of mammals.
Inequality of the duration of life in males and females.
Relations between longevity and fertility of the organism . 47
III
THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY
Relations between longevity and the structure of the digestive
system. The caeca in birds. The large intestine of mam-
mals. Function of the large intestine. The intestinal
microbes and their agency in producing auto-intoxication
and auto-infection in the organism. Passage of microbes
through the intestinal wall ....... 59
IV
MICROBES AS THE CAUSE OF SENILITY
Relations between longevity and the intestinal flora. Rumi-
nants. The horse. Intestinal flora of birds. Intestinal
flora of cursorial birds. Duration of life in cursorial
birds. Flying mammals. Intestinal flora and longevity
of bats. Some exceptions to the rule. Resistance of the
lower vertebrates to certain intestinal microbes ... 73
CONTENTS
DURATION OF HUMAN LIFE
Longevity of man. Theory of Ebstein on the normal duration
of human life. Instances of human longevity. Circum-
stances which may explain the long duration of human life 84
PART III
INVESTIGATIONS ON NATURAL DEATH
I
NATURAL DEATH AMONGST PLANTS
Theory of the immortality of unicellular organisms. Examples
of very old trees. Examples of short-lived plants. Pro-
longation of the life of some plants. Theory of the natural
death of plants by exhaustion. Death of plants from auto-
intoxication . 94
II
NATURAL DEATH IN THE ANIMAL WORLD
Different origins of death in animals. Examples of natural
death associated with violent acts. Examples of natural
death in animals without digestive organs. Natural death
in the two sexes. Hypothesis as to the cause of natural
death in animals . . . . . . . . . 109
III
NATURAL DEATH AMONGST HUMAN BEINGS
Natural death in the aged. Analogy of natural death and
sleep. Theories of sleep. Ponogenes. The instinct of
sleep. The instinct of natural death. Replies to critics.
Agreeable sensation at the approach of death . . .119
PART IV
SHOULD WE TRY TO PROLONG HUMAN LIFE?
THE BENEFIT TO HUMANITY
Complaints of the shortness of our life. Theory of " medical
selection " as a cause of degeneration of the race. Utility
of prolonging human life .... . 132
xvi CONTENTS
PAGE
II
SUGGESTIONS FOR THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Ancient methods of prolonging human life. Gerokomy. The
" immortality draught " of the Taoists. Brown-S6quard's
method. The spermine of Poehl. Dr. Weber's precepts.
Increased duration of life in historical times. Hygienic
maxims. Decrease in cutaneous cancer .... 136
III
DISEASES THAT SHORTEN LIFE
Measures against infectious diseases as aiding in the prolonga-
tion of life. Prevention of syphilis. Attempts to prepare
serums which could strengthen the higher elements of the
organism 145
IV
INTESTINAL PUTREFACTION SHORTENS LIFE
Uselessness of the large intestine in man. Case of a woman
whose large intestine was inactive for six months. Another
case where the greater part of the large intestine was com-
pletely shut off. Attempts to disinfect the contents of the
large intestine. Prolonged mastication as a means of pre-
venting intestinal putrefaction 151
LACTIC ACID AS INHIBITING INTESTINAL PUTREFACTION
The development of the intestinal flora in man. Harmlessness
of sterilised food. Means of preventing the putrefaction of
food. Lactic fermentation and its anti-putrescent action.
Experiments on man and mice. Longevity in races which
used soured milk. Comparative study of different soured
milks. Properties of the Bulgarian Bacillus. Means of
preventing intestinal putrefaction with the help of microbes 161
PART V
PSYCHICAL RUDIMENTS IN MAN
RUDIMENTARY ORGANS IN MAN
Reply to critics who deny the simian origin of man. Actual
existence of rudimentary organs. Reductions in the struc-
CONTENTS xvii
PAGE
ture of the organs of sense in man. Atrophy of Jacobson's
organ and of the Harderian gland in the human race . . 184
II
HUMAN TRAITS OF CHARACTER INHERITED FROM APES
The mental character of anthropoid apes. Their muscular
strength. Their expression of fear. The awakening of
latent instincts of man under the influence of fear . .191
III
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA AS MENTAL RELICS
Fear as the primary cause of hysteria. Natural somnambulism.
Doubling of personality. Some examples of somnam-
bulists. Analogy between somnambulism and the life of
anthropoid apes. The psychology of crowds. Importance
of the investigation of hysteria for the problem of the origin
of man ........... 200
PART VI
SOME POINTS IN THE HISTORY OF SOCIAL ANIMALS
I
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE RACE
Problem of the species in the human race. Loss of individuality
in the associations of lower animals. Myxomycetes and
Siphonophora. Individuality in Ascidians. Progress in the
development of the individual living in a society . .212
II
INSECT SOCIETIES
Social life of insects. Development and preservation of indi-
viduality in colonies of insects. Division of labour and
sacrifice of individuality in some insects .... 220
III
SOCIETY AND THE INDIVIDUAL IN THE HUMAN RACE
Human societies. Differentiation in the human race. Learned
women. Habits of a bee, Halictus quadricinctus. Col-
lectivist theories. Criticisms by Herbert Spencer and
b
xviii CONTENTS
PAGE
Nietzsche. Progress of individuality in the societies of
higher beings . 223
PART VII
PESSIMISM AND OPTIMISM
I
PREVALENCE OF PESSIMISM
Oriental origin of pessimism. Pessimistic poets. Byron.
Leopardi. Poushkin. Lermontoff. Pessimism and suicide 233
II
ANALYSIS OF PESSIMISM
Attempts to assign reasons for the pessimistic conception of
life. Views of E. von Hartmann. Analysis of Kowalev-
sky's work on the psychology of pessimism .... 239
III
PESSIMISM IN ITS RELATION TO HEALTH AND AGE
Relation between pessimism and the state of the health.
History of a man of science who was pessimistic when
young and who became an optimist in old age. Optimism
of Schopenhauer when old. Development of the sense of
life. Development of the senses in blind people. The sense
of obstacles 247
PART VIII
GOETHE AND FAUST
I
GOETHE'S YOUTH
Goethe's youth. Pessimism of youth. Werther. Tendency to
suicide. Work and love. Goethe's conception of life in
his maturity 261
II
GOETHE AND OPTIMISM
Goethe's optimistic period. His mode of life in that period.
Influence of love in artistic production. Inclinations
towards the arts must be regarded as secondary sexual char-
CONTENTS xix
PAGE
acters. Senile love of Goethe. Relation between genius
and the sexual activities ....... 270
III
GOETHE'S OLD AGB
Old age of Goethe. Physical and intellectual vigour of the
old man. Optimistic conception of life. Happiness in life
in his last period 279
IV
GOETHE AND " FAUST "
Faust the biography of Goethe. The three monologues in
the first Part. Faust's pessimism. The brain-fatigue
which finds a remedy in love. The romance with Mar-
guerite and its unhappy ending . . . . . . 283
V
THE OLD AGE OF FAUST
The second Part of Faust is in the main a description of senile
love. Amorous passion of the old man. Humble attitude
of the old Faust. Platonic love for Helena. The old
Faust's conception of life. His optimism. The general idea
of the play 290
PART IX
SCIENCE AND MORALITY
UTILITARIAN AND INTUITIVE MORALITY
Difficulty of the problem of morality. Vivisection and anti-vivi-
section. Enquiry into the possibility of rational morality.
Utilitarian and intuitive theories of morality. Insufficiency
of these 301
II
MORALITY AND HUMAN NATURE
Attempts to found morality ori the laws of human nature.
Kant's theory of moral obligation. Some criticisms of the
Kantian theory. Moral conduct must be guided by reason 309
xx CONTENTS
PAG*
III
INDIVIDUALISM
Individual morality. History of two brothers brought up in the
same circumstances, but whose conduct was quite different.
Late development of the sense of life. Evolution of sym-
pathy. The sphere of egoism in moral conduct. Christian
morality. Morality of Herbert Spencer. Danger of exalted
altruism . 316
IV
ORTHOBIOSIS
Human nature must be modified according to an ideal. Com-
parison with the modification of the constitution of plants
and of animals. Schlanstedt rye. Burbank's plants.
The ideal of orthobiosis. The immorality of ignorance.
The place of hygiene in the social life. The place of altru-
ism in moral conduct. The freedom of the theory of
orthobiosis from metaphysics 325
THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
PART I
THE INVESTIGATION OF OLD AGE
I
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY
IS/39
Treatment of old people in uncivilised countries Assassina-
tion of old people in civilised countries Suicide of old people
Public assistance in old age Centenarians Mme.
Robineau, a lady of 106 years of age Principal characters
of old age Examples of old mammals Old birds and tor-
toises Hypothesis of senile degeneration in the lower
animals
IN the ' ' Nature of Man ' ' I laid down the outlines of a theory
of the actual changes which take place during the sen-
escence of our body. These ideas, on the one hand, have
raised certain difficulties, and, on the other, have led to new
investigations. As the study of old age is of great
theoretical importance, and naturally is of practical value,
I think that it is useful to pursue the subject still further.
^. Although there exist races which solve the difficulty of
^ old age by the simple means of destroying aged people,
y^ the problem in civilised countries is complicated by our
more refined feelings and by considerations of a general
nature.
In the Melanesian Islands, old people who have become
incapable of doing useful work are buried alive.
In times of famine, the natives of Tierra del Fuego kill
and eat the old women before they touch their dogs.
B
2 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
When they were asked why they did this, they said that
dogs could catch seals, whilst old women could not do so.
Civilised races do not act like the Fuegians or other
savages ; they neither kill nor eat the aged, but none the
less life in old age often becomes very sad. As they are
incapable of performing any useful function in the family
or in the village, the old people are regarded as a heavy
burden. Although they cannot be got rid of, their death
is awaited with eagerness, and is never thought to come
soon enough. The Italians say that old women have seven
lives. According to a Bergamask tradition, old women
have seven souls, and after that an eighth soul, quite
a little one, and after that again half a soul ; whilst the
Lithuanians complain that the life of an old woman is so
tough that it cannot be crushed even in a mill. We may
take it as an echo of such popular ideas that murders of
old people are extremely common even in the most civilised
European countries. I have been astonished in looking
through criminal records to see how many cases there are
of the murder of old people, specially of old women. It is
easy to divine the motives of these acts. A convict of the
Island of Saghalien, condemned for the assassination of
several old persons, declared naively to the prison doctor :
"Why pity them? They were already old, and would
have died in any case in a few years."
In the celebrated novel of Dostoiewsky, " Crime and
Punishment," there is a tavern scene where young people
discuss all sorts of general topics. In the middle of the
conversation a student declares that he would " murder and
rob any cursed old woman without the least remorse."
" If the truth were told," he goes on to say, "this is how
I look at the thing. On the one hand a stupid old woman,
childish, worthless, ill-tempered, and in bad health ; no one
would miss her, indeed she is a nuisance to evervone. She
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY 3
does not even herself know any reason why she should
live, and perhaps to-morrow death will make a good rid-
dance of her. On the other hand, there are fresh and
vigorous young people who are dying in their
thousands, in the most senseless way, no one troubling
about them, and everywhere the same thing is going on."
Old people not only run the risk of murder; they very
often end their own lives prematurely by suicide.
They prefer death to a life oppressed by material hard-
ships or burdened by diseases. The daily papers give many
instances of old people who, tired of suffering, asphyxiate
themselves by their charcoal stoves.
The frequency of suicide in the case of the old has been
established by numerous statistics, and the new facts which
I now cite do no more than confirm it. In 1878, in
Prussia, amongst 100,000 individuals there were 154 cases
of suicide of men between the ages of 20 and 50, but 295,
that is to say, nearly twice as many of men between the
ages of 50 and 80. In Denmark, a country in which
suicide is notoriously common, a similar proportion exists.
Thus, in Copenhagen, in the ten years from 1886 to 1895,
there were 394 suicides of men between 50 and 70. These
figures relate to 100,000 individuals. Of the suicides
36^ per cent, were those of people in the prime of life,
63 per cent, those of the aged. 1
In such circumstances, it is natural that politicians and
philanthropists have made many attempts to ameliorate the
old age of the poor. In some countries laws have been
passed to bring about this. For instance, a Danish law
of June 27th, 1891, established compulsory aid for the
aged, enacting that every person more than 60 years
old was to have the legal right to aid if required. In
1896 more than 36,000 people (36,246) were pensioned
1 Westergaard, Mortalitaet u. Morbilitaet, 2nd. Edit., 190!, pp. 653-655.
B 2
4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
under this law, at a cost of nearly ,200,000. In Belgium,
the indigent old people are not pensioned until they reach
the age of 65. In France, until recently, the aged poor
could be supported at the public expense only by prosecut-
ing them and sending them to prison for begging. This
state of affairs, however, ceased with the application of the
law of July i5th, 1905, according to which any French
subject without resources, unable to support himself by
work, and either more than 70 years of age, or suffering
from some incurable infirmity or disease, is to receive
public assistance.
It has been thought the proper course to make such laws,
and to lay the burden on the general population, without
inquiring if it may not be possible to retard the debility
of old age to such an extent that very old people might
still be able to earn their livelihood by work. Old age
can be studied by the methods of exact science, and there
may yet be established some regimen by which health and
vigour will be preserved beyond the age where now it is
generally necessary to resort to public charity. With this
object, a systematic investigation of senescence should be
made in institutions for the aged, where there are always
a large number of people from 75 to 90 years old, although
centenarians are extremely rare. I know many institu-
tions for aged men where, from their first foundation, there
has been no case of an inhabitant reaching the age of 100,
and even in similar institutions for women, although
women live to much greater ages than men, centenarians
are very rare. At the Salpetriere, for instance, where there
is always a large number of old women, it is the rarest
chance to find a centenarian. Opportunity for the study
of the extremely aged is to be found only in private
families.
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY 5
Most of the centenarians whom I have been able to see
have been so defective mentally that all that can be studied
in them are the physical qualities and functions. A few
years ago an old woman who had reached her looth year
was the pride of the Salpetriere. She was bedridden and
extremely feeble physically and mentally. She replied
briefly when she was asked questions, but apparently with-
out any idea of what they meant.
Not long ago, a lady who lived in a suburb of Rouen
reached her looth birthday. The local newspapers wrote
exaggerated articles about her, praising the integrity of her
mind and her physical strength. I paid a visit to her
myself, hoping to make a detailed investigation, but I
found at once that the journalists had completely misrepre-
sented her condition. Although her physical health was
fairly good, her intelligence had degenerated to such an
extent that I had to abandon the idea of any serious inves-
tigation.
The most interesting of all the centenarians with whom
I have become acquainted had reached an extremely
advanced age, having entered upon her loyth year. It is
about two years ago that a journalist, Monsieur Flamans,
took me to see this Mme. Robineau who lived in a suburb
of Paris. I found her a very old-looking lady, rather
short, thin, with a bent back, and leaning heavily on a
cane when she walked. The physical condition (Mme.
Robineau was born on January i2th, 1800), of this woman
of more than 106 years, showed extreme decay. She had
only one tooth ; she had to sit down after every few steps,
but, once comfortably seated, she could remain in that
position for quite a long time. She went to bed early and
got up very late. Her features displayed very great age
(see Fig. i), although her skin was not extremely wrinkled.
THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
FIG. i. Mme. Robineau, a centenarian. From a photograph taken on her
one hundred and fifth birthday.
The skin of her hands had become so transparent that one
could see the bones, the blood-vessels, and the tendons.
Her senses were very feeble; she could see only with one
eye ; taste and smell were extremely rudimentary ; her hear-
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY 7
ing was her best means of relation with the external world.
None the less, Dr. Lowenberg, a well-known aurist, had
assured himself that her auditory organs showed in a most
marked degree, the usual signs of old age, such as complete
insensibility to high notes and slight deafness for low
notes. Dr. Lowenberg attributed these changes to senile
degeneration of the ear which affected more and more
seriously the nervous mechanism although it had caused
little change in the conducting apparatus. Notwithstand-
ing her physical weakness, Mme. Robineau retained her
intelligence fully, her mind remained delicate and refined
and the goodness of her heart was touching. In contrast
with the usual selfishness of old people, Mme. Robineau
took a vivid interest in those around her. Her conversation
was intelligent, connected, and logical. Examination of
the physical functions of this old lady revealed facts of
great interest. Dr. Ambard found that the sounds of the
heart were normal, but perhaps a little accentuated. The
pulse was regular, 70 to 84 a minute, and its tension was
normal. The arterial pressure was 17. The lungs were
sound. All these facts testify to her general health. The
most remarkable circumstance was the absence of sclerosis
of the arteries, although such degeneration is usually
believed to be a normal character of old age.
Analysis of the urine, made on several occasions, showed
that the kidneys were affected with a chronic disease,
which, however, was not serious. 1
Although the sense of taste was weak, Madame Robineau
1 The volume of the urine excreted in 24 hours (in January 1905)
was 500 c.c., with a density of 1019. There was no albumen or
sugar. The quantity, per litre, of urea was 1 1*50 gr., of chlorides 9 gr.,
of phosphates ri5 gr. The sediment contained crystals of uric acid,
some pavement epithelium cells, a very few cells from the tubules, some
hyaline platelets and isolated white corpuscles.
8 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
had a fair appetite. She ate and drank little, "but her
diet was varied. She took butcher's meat or chicken ex-
tremely seldom, but ate eggs, fish, farinaceous food, vege-
tables, and stewed fruit, and drank sweetened water with
a little white wine, and sometimes, after a meal, a small
glass of dessert wine. The processes of alimentary diges-
tion and excretion were normal.
It has sometimes been thought that duration of life is
a hereditary property. There was no evidence for this
in the present case. Madame Robineau's relatives had
died comparatively early in life, and a centenarian was
unknown in her family. Her great age was an acquired
character. Her whole life had been extremely regular.
She had married a timber merchant, and had lived for
many years in a suburb of Paris in comfortable circum-
stances. Her character was gentle and affectionate; she
was thoroughly domesticated, and had been devoted to
home life with very few distractions.
At the age of 106 years, her intelligence suddenly became
weak. She lost her memory almost completely, and some-
times wandered. But her gentle and affectionate disposi-
tion remained unaltered.
The appearance of aged persons is too well known to
make detailed description necessary. The skin of the face
is dry and wrinkled and generally pale; the hairs on the
head and the body are white; the back is bent, and the
gait is slow and laborious, whilst the memory is weak.
Such are the most familiar traits of old age. Baldness
is not a special character; it often begins during youth
and naturally is progressive, but if it has not already
appeared, it does not come on with old age.
The stature diminishes in old age. As the result of a
series of observations, it has been established that a man
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY 9
loses more than an inch (3'i66 cm.), and a woman more
than an inch and a half (4*3 cm.), between the ages of
fifty and eighty-five years. In extreme cases, the loss
may be nearly three inches. The weight also becomes
less. According to Quetelet, males attain their maximum
weights at the age of forty, females at that of fifty. From
the age of sixty years onwards, the body becomes
lighter, the loss at eighty being as much as thirteen
pounds.
Such losses of height and Weight are signs of the general
atrophy of the aged organism. Not merely the soft parts,
such as the muscles and viscera, but even the bones lose
weight, in the latter case the loss being of the mineral
constituents. This process of decalcification makes the
skeleton Brittle, and is sometimes the cause of fatal acci-
dents./
Jfre loss of muscular tissue is specially great. The
v61ume diminishes, and the substance becomes paler; the
fat between the fibres is absorbed, and may disappear
completely. Movements are slower, and the muscular
force is abated. This progressive degeneration has been
examined by dynamometrical measurements of the hand
and the trunk, and is greater in males than in females.
The volumes and weights of the visceral organs simi-
larly become smaller, but the diminution is not uniform.
The old age of lower mammals presents characters
similar to those found in man. I can now give other
instances than the case of the old dog which I described
in the " Nature of Man."
I will first take the case of old elephants, described by
a competent observer. "The general appearance is
wretched, the skull being often hardly covered with skin ;
there are deep abrasions under the eyes, and smaller ones
io THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
on the cheeks, whilst the skin of the forehead is very*
often deeply fissured or covered with lumps. The eyes
are usually dim, and discharge an abnormal quantity of
water. The margin of the ears, specially on the lower
side, is usually frayed. The skin of the trunk is rough-
ened, hard, and warty, so that the organ has lost much
of its flexibility. The skin on the body generally is worn
and wrinkled; the legs are thinner than in maturity, the
FIG. 2. A Mare, thirty-seven years old.
huge mass of muscles being much shrunken, whilst the
circumference, especially just above the feet, is consider-
ably reduced. The skin round the toe-nails is roughened
and frayed. The tail is scaly and hard, and the tip is often
hairless.
Horses begin to grow old much sooner than elephants.
I reproduce (Fig. 2) the photograph of a rare instance of
longevity, a mare 37 years old, which belonged to M.
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY n
Me"taine, in the department of Mayenne. The skin, bare
in places, but elsewhere covered with long hairs, shows
considerable atrophy. The general attitude reveals the
feebleness of the whole body. Many birds, on the other
hand, show at similar ages very slight external change, as
may be seen from the photograph of a duck more than 25
years old (Fig. 3) which belonged to Dr. Jean Charcot. At
a still greater age, as may be seen occasionally in parrots,
FIG. 3. A White Duck, which lived for more than a quarter of a century.
the general debility of the body reveals itself in the atti-
tude, in the condition of the feathers, and in the swelling
of the joints. On the other hand, the oldest reptiles which
have been observed do not differ in appearance from
normal adults of the same species. I have in my posses-
sion a male tortoise (Testudo mauritanica) given me by
my friends MM. Rabaud and Caullery, and which is at
least 86 years old. It shows no sign of old age, and in
12 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
all respects behaves like any other individual of this
species. More than 31 years ago it was wounded by a
blow, the traces of which remain visible on the right side
of the carapace (Fig. 4). In the last three years the
tortoise lived in a garden at Montauban, along with two
females which laid fertile eggs. The old male, although,
as I have said, probably at least 86 years of age, was still
sexually healthy.
I have borrowed from the interesting volume of Prof.
Sir E. Ray Lankester 1 the figure (Fig. 5) and de-
FIG. 4. An Old Land-tortoise.
scription of a giant tortoise from the island of Mauritius,
which is probably the oldest of all living animals. It
was brought to Mauritius from the Seychelles in 1764,
and has lived since then in the garden of the Governor,
and as it has thus already been 140 years in captivity,
its age must be at least 150 years, although we have not
exact information. Notwithstanding this, it shows no
signs of old age.
The examples which I have brought together show that
1 Extinct Animals, London, 1905, pp. 28, 29.
THE PROBLEMS OF SENILITY 13
often amongst vertebrates there are some animals the organ-
isms of which withstand the ravages of time much better
than that of man. I think it a fair inference that senility,
the precocious senescence which is one of the greatest
sorrows of humanity, is not so profoundly seated in the
constitution of the higher animals as has generally been
supposed. It is not necessary, therefore, to discuss at
FIG. 5. A Water-tortoise, mere than 150 years old.
(After Prof. Sir E. Ray Lankester.)
length the general question as to whether senile degenera-
tion is an inevitable event in living organisms.
I have already shown, in the " Nature of Man," the differ-
ence which exists between senile degeneration in our own
bodies and the phenomena of senescence amongst In-
fusoria which, as M. Maupas described, are followed by
a process of rejuvenescence. According to the more recent
results of several investigators, the difference is still
greater than I had supposed. Enriquez l has been able
1 Rendiconti d. Accad. d. Lincei, 1906, vol xiv. pp. 351, 390.
1 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
to propagate Infusoria to the 7ooth generation without any
sign of senility being displayed. Here we are far from
the condition in the human race.
R. Hertwig, 1 one of the best observers of the lower
animals, has recently attempted to show that the very
simple animalculae of the genus Actinosphaerium are
subject to true physiological degeneration. He has several
times seen cultures of this Rhizopod degenerate, until all
the individuals had died, notwithstanding the presence of
abundant food. Prof. Hertwig attributed this to the " con-
stitution of the Actinosphaerium having been weakened by
too great vital activity at an earlier stage." I should have
thought that it was a much more natural explanation to
suppose that the culture had undergone infection by one
of the contagious diseases which so often destroy cultures
of different kinds of lower animals and plants. As this
idea had not occurred to the observer, he had not searched
for parasitic microbes amongst the granulations which are
always present in the body of an Actinosphaerium. How-
ever this may be, I cannot accept the facts brought forward
by this distinguished German as a valid proof of the exist-
ence of senile degeneration in these lowly creatures.
The facts that I have brought together in this chapter
justify the conclusion that human beings who reach ex-
treme old age may preserve their mental qualities notwith-
standing serious physical decay. Moreover, it is equally
plain that the organism of some vertebrates is- able to
resist the influence of time much longer than is the case
with man under present conditions.
1 Ueb. d. physiologische Degeneration bet Actinosphaerium eicJiJiornii.
Jena, 1904.
II
THEORIES OF CAUSATION OF SENILITY
Hypothesis of the causation of senility Senility cannot be
attributed to the cessation of the power of reproduction of
the cells of the body Growth of the hair and the nails in
old age Inner mechanism of the senescence of the tissues
Notwithstanding the criticisms of M. Marinesco, the neurono-
phags are true phagocytes The whitening of hair and
the destruction of nerve cells, as arguments against a theory
of old age based on the failure of the reproductive powers
of the cells
ALTHOUGH it has not been proved that living matter must
inevitably undergo senile decrepitude, it is none the less
true that man and his nearest allies generally exhibit such
degeneration. It is therefore extremely important to recog-
nise the real causes of our senescence. There have been
many hypotheses on the subject, but there are compara-
tively few definite facts known.
Biitschli has supposed that the life of cells is maintained
by a specific vital ferment which becomes feebler in pro-
portion to the extent of cellular reproduction, but I cannot
regard this as more than a pious opinion. The ferment
has never been seen, and we do not know of its actual
existence. According to the better-known theory of Prof.
Weismann, old age depends on a limitation in the power
of cells to reproduce, so that a time comes when the body
can no longer replace the wastage of cells which is an
1 6 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
inevitable accompaniment of life. As old age appears at
different times in different species and different indivi-
duals, Weismann has concluded that the possible number
of cell generations differs in different cases. He has not
found, however, a solution of the problem as to why multi-
plication of cells should cease in one individual, whereas
it proceeds much further in other individuals. Prof.
Minot, 1 the American zoologist, has developed a similar
theory, and has employed an exact method to determine
the gradual diminution in the rate of growth of an animal
from its birth onwards. According to him, the power
of reproduction of the cells weakens progressively during
life, until a point is necessarily reached at which the
organism, no longer capable of repairing itself, begins
to atrophy and degenerate. Dr. Buehler 2 has recently laid
stress upon this theory.
There is no doubt that cells reproduce much more actively
during the embryonic period. The process becomes slower
later on, but, none the less, continues to display itself
throughout the whole period of life. Buehler attributes
the difficulty with which certain wounds heal in the case
of old people to the insufficiency of cellular reproduc-
tion. He thinks in particular that the proliferation of the
cells of the skin, to replace those which are worn off from
the surface, becomes less active with age. According to
him, it is theoretically obvious that a time must come
when the replacement of the epidermic cells completely
ceases. As the superficial layers of the skin continue to
dry up and be cast off, it is plain that the epidermis must
disappear completely. Buehler thinks that there must be
1 "Senescence and Rejuvenation," Journal of Physiology^ 1891,
t. xii.
2 Biologisches Centralblatt, 1904, pp. 65, 8 1, 113.
THEORIES OF CAUSATION OF SENILITY 17
a similar fate for the genital glands, the muscles, and all
the other organs.
These theoretical considerations, however, are not com-
patible with certain well-known facts indicating that there
is no general cessation of the power of cell reproduction
in old age. The hairs and the nails, which are epidermic
outgrowths, continue to grow throughout life, their growth
being due to the proliferation of their constituent cells.
There is no sign of any arrest in the development of these
structures, even in the most advanced old age. The reverse
is true. It is well known that the hairs on some parts
of the body increase in number and in length in old people.
In some lower races, for instance in the Mongols, the
moustache and the beard grow vigorously in old age,
whilst young people of the same race have only very small
moustaches and practically no trace of beard. So also
in white women the fine and almost invisible down which
covers the upper lip, the chin, and the cheeks in the young
may become replaced by long hairs which form a mous-
tache or beard.
Dr. Pohl, a specialist in the growth of hair, has measured
the rate of growth in different circumstances. He has
shown that in an old man of 61 the hair on the temple
grew ii mm. in a month; on the other hand, the hair on
the same region in boys of n to 15 years old grew in the
same time only from 11 to 12 mm. Plainly, there is no
case here of a progressive diminution of cell-proliferation
with age. The same observer, it is true, has shown that
the hair of young men of between 21 and 24 years grew at
the rate of 15 mm. a month, whilst in the same individuals,
at the age of 61 years, the rate of growth was only 1 1 mm. ;
but this diminution in the rate of growth is only apparent.
The first figure concerned the hair taken from different
C
1 8 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
regions of the scalp, whilst the second related only to the
hair on the temples, and Dr. Pohl himself has shown that,
in the latter region, the hair grows slower than in other
regions. Moreover, in many boys of 11 to 15 years old,
studied by this observer, the rate of growth was always
less than 15 mm., and often less even than the 11 mm.
recorded in the old man of 61.
I have been able to note that the nails grow even in very
old people. In the case of Mme. Robineau, the centena-
rian, the nail of the middle ringer of the left hand grew
2\ mm. in three weeks. In the case of a lady of 32 years
old, the corresponding nail grew 3 mm. in two weeks, the
difference being out of all proportion to the enormous
difference in the age. The centenarian's nails had to be
cut from time to time.
Although the hairs of old people grow, they become
white, which is a phenomenon of senile degeneration.
Although they increase in length, the colouring matter in
them becomes reduced and finally disappears. In the
" Nature of Man " I described the process by which this
blanching takes place, and which may now be regarded as
definitely proved. It is useful as a means of interpreting
the real nature of the process of senescence. In several
published works, I have explained my belief that just as
the pigment of the hair is destroyed by phagocytes, so also
the atrophy of other organs of the body, in old age, is very
frequently due to the action of devouring cells which I
have called macrophags. These are the phagocytes that
destroy the higher elements of the body, such as the nervous
and muscular cells, and the cells of the liver and kidneys.
This part of my theory has encountered very strong criti-
cism, especially with regard to the part played by the
macrophags in the senescence of nervous tissue.
THEORIES OF CAUSATION OF SENILITY 19
Neurologists in particular, have criticised my interpreta-
tion. For several years M. Marinesco 1 has attacked my
theory of the atrophy of the nerve-cells in old age. In the
first place, he has stated that in old people, and even if
these are very old, it is rare to find phagocytes surrounding
and devouring the cells of the brain. In support of this
contention, he has been good enough to send me two pre-
parations made from the brains of two very old persons.
After careful examination I was convinced that my oppo-
nent had been inexact. In the brain of the two centenarians
(one of whom died at the age of 1 17 years) there were very
many nerve-cells surrounded by phagocytes and in process
of being destroyed by them. It happened, however, that
as the sections were very weakly stained, it was more diffi-
cult to observe the facts than in the preparations upon
which I had made my own observations. I have already
recorded this fact in the second and third French editions
of the " Nature of Man."
Without taking notice of my reply, M. Marinesco has
published another criticism of my theory in an article' 2
entitled " Histological Investigations into the Mechanism of
Senility." In that work, although he himself had invented
the designation " neuronophag " for a phagocyte that
devours nerve-cells, he denies the existence of such a power.
He thinks that nerve-cells atrophy independently of the
cells that surround them. The latter, the so-called neur-
onophags, only contribute to the atrophy inasmuch as they
press against the nerve-cells and deprive them of nutrition.
He is confident that the constituent parts of nerve-cells are
never found in the neuronophags. There is no question qf
1 Com+tcs rendus de TAcadtmie des sciences, 23 April, 1900.
2 Revue generate des sciences, 30 Dec., 1904, p. 1116.
C 2
20 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
phagocytosis, of the existence of cells that devour their
neighbours.
M. Leri has taken a similar view in a Report on the
Senile Brain 1 presented to a recent congress of alienists
and neurologists. According to him " the nuclei which
surround some of the atrophying nerve-cells do not play
the part of neuronophags." In his monograph " La
Neuronophagie," 2 M. Sand elaborates the same view. He
relies on his observation that " neuronophags are usually
either devoid of protoplasm or display only a very thin layer
of it. They never exhibit protoplasmic outgrowths, and
they never have granules in their cellular bodies (p. 86)."
Still more recently MM. Laignel-Lavastine and Voisin a
have taken the same view, maintaining that the neurono-
phags do not display phagocytosis.
Although I cannot undertake here to give a detailed reply
to the arguments of my critics, I may point out a fallacy
that vitiates their reasoning. The study of the intimate
structure of nervous tissue involves the treatment of that
very delicate substance by numerous active reagents. It is
extremely important not to forget the possibility of altera-
tions which may be produced in the processes of preparation
and which are extremely difficult to avoid. A glance at the
figures given by my critics shows me that the neurono-
phags in their preparations had been subjected to violent
treatment. When M. Leri speaks of "the nuclei which
surround some of the nerve-cells," and M. Sand of " cells
without protoplasm," it is clear that they had been observ-
ing cells destroyed by the processes of the laboratory. The
1 Le Bulletin mtdical, 1906, p. 721 ; Le Cerveau senile, Lille, 1906,
pp. 64-69.
- Mtmoires couronnes publics par FAcadtmie royale de Belgique,
Bruxelles, 1906.
3 Revue de Medecine, Nov., 1906, p. 870.
THEORIES OF CAUSATION OF SENILITY 21
illustrations in the memoir of M. Marinesco show that in
his preparations, too, the neuronophags had been very
greatly altered.
It is well known that nuclei do not exist free in tissues,
and that when they appear devoid of protoplasm, there has
been some defect in the technical methods of preparing
them for examination. As a matter of fact, neuronophags
do not consist of nuclei with at the most a pellicle of proto-
plasm ; like other cells, they have protoplasmic bodies
which, however, are frequently destroyed by the violent
processes of histological preparation.
The arguments of my critics recall to me the words of a
medical student, who, on being asked to describe the
microbe of tuberculosis, said that it was a little red bacillus.
The bacillus in question, like most bacilli, is colourless,
but it is usual to stain it so that it may be visible under
the microscope. The student, knowing it only in particu-
lar preparations, had a false idea of its appearance.
In well-made preparations, neuronophags are typical cells
with abundant protoplasm. When they have been pre-
served by a process that does not dissolve their contents,
they show granules like those found in nerve-cells.
To study neuronophagy, M. Manouelian, 1 in the labora^
tory of the Pasteur Institute in Paris, set himself to improve
the technical methods of preparation. He succeeded in
showing first that in the destruction of nerve-cells that
occurs in cases of hydrophobia, the contents of these cells
are absorbed by the surrounding neuronophags. " My
observations on the cerebro-spinal ganglia of human cases
of hydrophobia," he wrote, " show clearly that the macro-
phags act as phagocytes of the nerve-cells." " Most of the
cells in the nerve-ganglia contain yellow, brown, and black
1 Annales de flnstitut Pasteur ; Oct. 1906, p. 859.
22 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
pigmented granules, usually united in small masses. What
becomes of these granulations on the destruction and dis-
appearance of the nerve-cell? If, as M. Marinesco has it,
there is no phagocytosis by the surrounding cells, but
merely a mechanical interference, then the granules, on the
destruction of the nerve-cells that contained them, should
be found lying in the interstitial tissue. But this does not
happen. The granules are ingested by cells which are true
macrophags."
By the aid of a very delicate mode of preparation, M.
Manouelian has shown that in the case of senile brains
the granules of the nerve-cells are absorbed by neurono-
phags. I have myself studied M. Manouelian's prepara-
tions and can testify to the accuracy of his observations
(Figs. 6 and 7).
Doubt is no longer possible. In senile degeneration the
nerve-cells are surrounded by neuronophags which absorb
their contents and bring about more or less complete
atrophy. It has been supposed that in order to devour their
contents, the neuronophags must penetrate the nerve-cells,
and such an event has rarely been seen. But it is well
known, the phagocytosis of red blood corpuscles being a
typical instance, that to absorb a cell a phagocyte does not
necessarily engulf it bodily or penetrate it, but may gradu-
ally denude it of its contents merely by resting in contact
with it.
There has been some discussion as to the condition of
nerve-cells which are on the point of being devoured by
neuronophags. It has been noticed that such cells may
display a considerable amount of degeneration without
being devoured, whilst, on the other hand, cells apparently
normal have been found undergoing phagocytosis. As I
cannot state definitely what are the conditions that induce
THEORIES OF CAUSATION OF SENILITY 23
the phagocytosis of nerve-cells, I shall not attempt a dis-
cussion of the problem.
Although the destruction of nerve-cells by neuronophags
is a general occurrence in senile brains, one may conceive
of cases where this does not occur. And so, in old people
who have preserved their faculties, it may well be that the
neuronophags have refrained from attacking the nerve-cells.
FIG. 6.
FIG. 7.
FIGS. 6. & 7. Two nerve-cells from the cortex of the brain of an old dog aged
fifteen years.
The neuronophags surrounding the nerve-cells contain numerous granulations.
(From preparations made by M. Manouelian.)
But as such instances are rare, so also phagocytosis is
usually found in senile brains, and I cannot accept M.
Sand's denial of its existence, based on his study of two
cases.
The general result of my investigation into the criticisms
that have been published on this matter has confirmed me
in my belief that neuronophagy plays a most important
24 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
part in senescence, and recent observations that I have
made with M. Weinberg have completely supported this
view.
The bleaching of hair and the atrophy of the brain in
old age thus furnish important arguments against the view
that senescence is the result of arrest of the reproduc-
tive powers of cells. Hairs grow old and become white
without ceasing to grow. The cessation of the power of
reproduction cannot be the cause of the senescence of brain-
cells, for these cells do not reproduce even in youth.
Ill
MECHANISM OF SENILITY
Action of the macrophags in destroying the higher cells
Senile degeneration of muscular fibres Atrophy of the skele-
ton Atheroma and arterial sclerosis Theory that old age is
due to alteration in the vascular glands Organic tissues
that resist phagocytosis
THE instances which I have selected in attempting to
describe the mechanism of senescence of the tissues are not
the only cases in which the importance of phagocytosis is
evident. The blanching of hair is due to the destructive
agency of chromophags; in atrophy of the brain neur-
onophags destroy the higher nerve-cells. In addition to
these instances of phagocytosis, in which the active agents
belong to the category of macrophags, there are many other
devouring cells, adrift in the tissues of the aged, and ready
to cause destruction of other cells of the higher type. The
phagocytic action is not so manifest as in the case of infec-
tious diseases, partly because it is the method of macro-
phags to absorb the contents of the higher cells extremely
slowly. The mode of action is well seen in the atrophy of
an egg-cell (Fig. 8), where the surrounding macrophags
gradually seize hold of the granules within it and carry
these off. As the process goes on, the ovum becomes
reduced to a shapeless mass, and finally leaves only a few
26 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
fragments, or disappears completely. M. Matchinsky l has
studied the series of events in my laboratory, and I am
myself well assured of the importance of the action of
macrophags in the atrophy of the ovary.
The phenomena of atrophy in general and of senile decay
afford other cases of tissue destruction in which the phago-
FIG. 8. Ovum of a Bitch in process of destruction by Phagocytes, which are full
of fatty granules.
(After M. Matchinsky.)
cytic character of the process is more modified and obscure
than in nerve-cells and ova.
It is well known that progressive muscular debility is an
accompaniment of old age. Physical work is seldom given
to men over sixty years of age, as it is notorious that they
are less capable of it. Their muscular movements are
feebler and soon bring on fatigue ; their actions are slow
and painful. Even old men whose mental vigour is un-
impaired admit their muscular weakness. The physical
1 Annales de FInstitut Pasteur, 1900, vol. xiv. p. 113.
MECHANISM OF SENILITY 27
correlate of this condition is an actual atrophy of the
muscles, and has for long been known to observers. More
than half a century ago, Kolliker, 1 one of the founders of
histology, devoted some attention to this matter, and
described the senile modification of muscular tissue in the
following words : " In old age there is a true atrophy of
the muscles. The fibres are much more slender ; there are
deposited in their substance numerous yellow or brown
granules and many globular nuclei. These nuclei are fre-
quently arranged in longitudinal series and present such
signs of active division as are found in embryonic tissue."
Other investigators afterwards made similar observations.
Vulpian 3 and Douaud 3 have stated that a multiplication of
nuclei takes places in the atrophying muscles of the old.
As the senile degeneration of muscular tissue appeared to
be important in my study of the mechanism of senescence,
M. Weinberg and I examined several qtases of muscular
atrophy in old human beings and lower animals. We were
able to recognise the phenomena observed by our prede-
cessors. In senile atrophy the muscular fibres contain
many nuclei, and these, increasing rapidly, bring about an
almost complete disappearance of the contractile substance
(Fig. 9). The fibres preserve their striation for a certain
time but eventually lose it and appear to contain an amor-
phous mass with numerous, rapidly multiplying nuclei.
The investigators who had recorded these facts thought
of them only as curious. It is plain, in the first place,
however, that this remarkable and rapid multiplication is a
proof that senile atrophy is not due to failure of cell pro-
1 Elements (fhistologie humaine, French translation, 1856, p. 222.
2 Lemons sur la physiologie du systeme nerveux, 1 866.
3 De la degentrescence graisseuse des muscles chez des vieillards.
Paris, 1867.
28
THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
liferation, although the latter has frequently been suggested
as the mechanism of senescence. In muscular atrophy, cell-
multiplication, so far from failing, greatly increases. We
may add muscular atrophy to the blanching of hair and the
decay of nerve-cells as another instance showing that senile
degeneration is not the result of cells ceasing to be able to
FIG. 9. Degeneration of striated muscle Fibres from the auricular muscle of a
man aged 87 years.
(From a preparation made by Dr. Weinberg. )
multiply. Just as in the atrophy of the brain there is an
increase in the volume of neurogloea, the substance in which
the neuronophags are found, so also in the atrophy of the
muscles there is an increase of muscular nuclei. Along
with the increase of nuclei, however, there is an increase of
the protoplasmic substance of the fibres known as sarco-
plasm. The latter replaces the myoplasm, the specific
striated substance of muscles, by a process which must be
MECHANISM OF SENILITY 29
regarded as parallel with phagocytosis. In a normal muscle
the two substances and the sarcoplasmic nuclei are in
equilibrium, but in old age the sarcoplasm and its nuclei
increase at the expense of the myoplasm. The equilibrium
is destroyed with the result that the muscular power is
weakened. In these conditions the sarcoplasm acts phago-
cytically with regard to the myoplasm, just as the chromo-
phag becomes the phagocyte of the pigment of the hair,
or the neuronophag devours the nerve-cell.
The investigation of other cases of muscular atrophy, as,
for instance, that of the caudal muscles of frog-tadpoles,
confirms the significance of the process that I have observed
in old age. In the two cases, what takes place is the
destruction of the contractile material of the muscles by
myophags, a special kind of phagocyte.
It is one of the curiosities of senile atrophy that whilst
there is hardening or sclerosis of so many organs, the skele-
ton, the most solid part of our frame-work, becomes less
dense, so that the bones are friable, the condition often
leading to serious accidents in old people. The bones
become porous, and lose weight. It is difficult to believe
that macrophags, although they destroy softer elements
such as nerve-cells or muscle fibres, can be able to gnaw
through a hard material like bone impregnated with
mineral salts. As a matter of fact, the mechanism of bone
atrophy must be placed in a different category from the
phagocytosis of other organs. It is brought about, how-
ever, by the agency of cells very like some of the macro-
phags. These cells contain many nuclei, and are known
as osteoclasts. They form round about the bony lamellae
and lead to their destruction, but are incapable of breaking
off fragments of bone and dissolving them in their interiors.
Although the intimate mechanism of this destructive action
3 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
is not thoroughly understood, it seems probable that the
cells secrete some acid which softens bone by dissolving
the lime salts. The process can be observed in the different
varieties of caries of the bone, and in the bony atrophy of
old age as is represented in Fig. 10.
By the action of the osteoclasts, which themselves are
macrophags, part of the lime in the skeleton is dissolved
during old age and passes into the general circulation.
This is probably a source of the lime which is deposited
so readily in the different tissues of old people. Whilst the
bones become lighter, the cartilages become bony, the inter-
FlG. io. Destruction by osteoclasts of bony matter in the sternum of a man aged
8 1 years.
(From a preparation made by Dr. Weinberg.)
vertebrate discs in particular becoming impregnated with
salts, so that the well-known senile malformation of the
backbone is produced.
As a result of this displacement of lime in old age, the
blood-vessels become modified in a distinctive fashion.
Atheroma of the arteries is not invariable in old people, but
it occurs extremely frequently. In this form of degenera-
tion, lime salts are deposited in the walls of the cells, so that
they become hard and friable. Several others, among
whom I may mention Durand-Fardel and Sauvage, have
laid stress on the coincidence of atheromatous lesions of the
arteries and senile degeneration of the bones. The relations
. MECHANISM OF SENILITY 31
between the two alterations are very evident in the skull ;
the meningeal artery becomes sinuous and atheromatous,
and the grooves on the inner side of the bones of the skull in
which it runs, flatten out, and become larger because of
other malformations. 1
There is no disharmony in the nature of old people so
striking as this transference of the lime salts from the
skeleton to the blood-vessels, producing as it does a danger-
ous softening of the former, and a hardening of the latter
that interferes with their function of carrying nutrition to
the organs. It is the manifestation of an extraordinary
disturbance of the properties of the cells that compose the
body. The atheromatous condition of the arteries is closely
linked with arterial sclerosis, an affection which is very
common, although not constant, in the aged. The whole
question of these vascular alterations is extremely complex,
and before it can be cleared up, a number of special inves-
tigations must be made.
Probably diseases of the arteries of different kinds, and
arising from different causes, are grouped under the terms
atheroma and sclerosis. In some cases the lesions are in-
flammatory and are due to the poisons of microbes. An
example of such an origin is the case of syphilitic sclerosis,
in which the specific microbes (spirilla of Schaudinn) lead
to precocious senescence. In other cases the arteries show
phenomena of degeneration resulting in the formation of
calcareous platelets which interfere with the circulation of
the blood.
Investigations which have been made in recent years
have led to very interesting results concerning the origin
of atheroma of the arteries. In most cases, attempts to
produce such lesions of the arteries by experimental
1 Demange, tude sur la vieillesse, 1886, p. 1 18.
32 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
methods have not succeeded, but M. Josue" 1 has been able
to produce true arterial atheroma in rabbits by injecting
into them adrenaline, the secretion of the suprarenal cap-
sules.
This experiment has been repeated many times and is
now well known. Later on, M. Boveri 2 obtained a similar
result by injecting nicotine, the poison of tobacco. It is
obvious, therefore, that amongst the arterial diseases which
play so great a part in senescence, some are chronic inflam-
mations produced by microbes, whilst others are brought
about by poisons introduced from without.
It is easy to understand, therefore, why these diseases of
the arteries are not always present in old age, although
they are very common.
The part played by the secretion of the suprarenal glands
in the production of arterial disease has brought renewed
attention to a theory which supposed that certain glandular
organs in the body play a preponderating part in senile
degeneration. Dr. Lorand 3 in particular has argued that
" senility is a morbid process due to the degeneration of the
thyroid gland and of other ductless glands which normally
regulate the nutrition of the body." It has long been
noticed that persons affected with myxodema, as a result
of the degeneration of the thyroid gland, look like very old
people. Everyone who has seen the cretins in Savoy,
Switzerland, or the Tyrol, must have noticed the aged
appearance of these victims, although very often they are
quite young. The condition of cretinism, with its pro-
found bodily changes, is the result of degeneration of the
thyroid gland. On the other hand, it is well known that
1 C. fi. de la Socie'te' de Biologic, 14 November, 1903.
2 Clinica medica, 1905, n. 6.
3 Bulletins de la Sotiete royale des sciences-medicales de Bruxelles, 1905,
n. 4, p. 105.
MECHANISM OF SENILITY 33
in old people the thyroid and the suprarenals frequently
show cystic degeneration. It is quite probable, therefore,
that these so-called vascular glands have their share in
producing senility. Many facts show that they destroy
certain poisons which have entered the body, and it is easy
to see that, if they have become functionless, the tissues
are threatened with poisoning. It does not follow, how-
ever, that their action in producing senility is exclusive, or
even preponderating. M. Weinberg, at the Pasteur Insti-
tute, made special investigations on this point, and found
that the thyroid gland and the suprarenal capsules were
almost invariably normal in old animals (cat, dog, horse),
although the latter showed unmistakable signs of senility.
Similarly in an old man of 80 years, who died from pneu-
monia, the thyroid gland was quite normal.
It must not be forgotten that the aged very often die
from infectious diseases such as pneumonia, tuberculosis,
and erysipelas. In these diseases the vascular glands
generally, and the thyroid gland in particular, are very
often affected, with the .result that what is due to infection
has been set down as a symptom of old age. 1
Although the appearance of patients from whom the
thyroid gland has been removed, or in whom it has degene-
rated spontaneously, recalls that of old people, it is possible
to exaggerate the similarity. In the masterly accounts of
such unfortunates, recently compiled by the well-known
surgeon Kocher 2 there are many points which are char-
acteristic, without being typical, of old people.
Oedema of the skin which characterises thyroid patients
1 Sarbach, Mittheilungen a. d. Grenzqeb. d. Med. u. CAir., vol. xv.'
1906.
2 Verhandlungen d. Kongr. f. innere Medicin. Wiesbaden, 1906, pp.
59, 98-
D
34 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
is by no means usual in old age. The loss of hair, normal
in the patients, is not a character of old age. In myx-
edematous women, menstruation is very active; it ceases
in old women. The great muscular development of
myxedematous patients distinguishes them from old people.
Physiological investigation does not support the exist-
ence of any strong affinity between old age and affection
of the thyroid gland. It is known that removal of the
thyroid is followed by cachexia only in young subjects^
MM. Bourneville and Bricon l having shown that the
tendency to cachexia after extirpation of the thyroid ceases
almost abruptly at the age of thirty. That age may be
taken as the limit of youth, of the time when growth is
vigorous and the function of the thyroid most active. Cases
of cachexia, where the thyroid gland has been removed in
old persons from fifty to seventy, are very .rare.
Rodents (rats, rabbits) support the removal of the thyroid
extremely well, without signs of cachexia, although these
are normally short-lived creatures. According to Horsley 2
extirpation of the thyroid is not followed by cachexia in
birds or rodents and is followed by it only very slowly in
ruminants and horses ; it produces the condition invariably
but slightly in man and monkeys and extremely seriously
in carnivora. If this series be compared with the informa-
tion given in the next section of this volume on the relative
ages which the animals in question attain, it will be seen
that there is no correspondence.
In short, whilst I do not deny that the vascular glands
may take a share in the causation of senility, in so far as
1 Archives de Neurologie, 1886.
2 Die Function d. Schilddruse, Virchou/s Festschrift, vol. i. 1891,
p. 369.
MECHANISM OF SENILITY 35
they are destroyers of poisons, I cannot agree with the
theory of Dr. Lorand.
I think it indubitable that in senescence the most active
factor is some alteration in the higher cells of the body,
accompanied by a destruction of these by macrophags
which gradually usurp the places of the higher elements and
replace them by fibrous tissue. Such a process affects the
organs of secretion (kidneys), the reproductive organs, and
in a modified form the skin, the mucous membranes, and
the skeleton. The testes are amongst the organs which
resist invasion by macrophags.
I have already given an ex-
ample (" The Nature of Man,"
p. 98) of an old man of 94 in
whom active spermatozoa were
produced. I know of a similar
case, the age being 103 years.
Such cases are not rare, and not
only in old men, but in old
animals, the testes continue to FIG. n. Testis tissue from a dog
aged twenty-two years.
be active. Dr. Wemberg and (From a preparation made by Dr.
I have investigated these Weinberg.)
organs in a dog which died at the age of 22 years after
several years of pronounced senility. Many of the organs
of the animal exhibited serious invasions by macrophags
but the testes were extremely active, the cells being in
free proliferation and producing abundant spermatozoa
(Fig. 11). In harmony with this condition of the
sexual organs, the sexual instincts of the animal remained
normal. We have investigated another dog which died
at the age of eighteen years. In this case the testes were
cancerous and there was no possibility of the production of
spermatozoa. None the less, this dog although markedly
D 2
36 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
senile (Fig. 12) still showed sexual instincts until shortly
before it died.
It is manifest that the tissues do not invariably degene-
rate in old age, nor do all the organs that are modified in
old age show destruction by phagocytes and replacement
by connective tissue. Organs which produce phagocytes,
such as the spleen, the spinal marrow and the lymphatic
glands, certainly show traces in old age of fibrous degenera-
FIG. 12. An old dog, iged eighteen years.
tion but remain sufficiently active to produce macrophags
which destroy the higher cellular elements of the body. I
have frequently noticed cell division in such organs, and
as an example inay give the case of the bone marrow taken
from a man of 81 years (Fig. 13).
The eye is an organ that is modified in old age without
the action of macrophags. Cataract and the senile arc
which appears as a milky ring at the edge of the cornea
MECHANISM OF SENILITY 37
are frequent in old age. These modifications are due to
impregnation of the parts affected by fatty matter which
makes them opaque. This deposition of fat 1 has been
attributed to defective nutrition. In most organs such
fatty degeneration is followed by phagocytosis, but the
cornea and the crystalline lens are exempt from this conse-
quence for anatomical reasons. Most organs possess in
addition to their higher elements a constant source of
macrophags. Such a source of phagocytosis is the neuro-
glcea in nervous tissues, the A
sarcoplasm in muscular tis-
sues ; the bones contain osteo-
clasts and the liver and the
kidneys are readily invaded by
phagocytes from the blood.
The lens and the cornea have
no cells that are able to become
macrophags. FlG I3< _ Bone marrow from the
Some infectious diseases sternum of a man aged eighty-
one years.
bring about precocious SCnil- (From a preparation made by Dr.
ity. A syphilitic child is "a Weinberg.)
miniature old man, with wrinkled face, skin dull
and discoloured and flabby and hanging in folds as
if it were too large." 2 In such a case the active
agent is the microbe of syphilis which has poisoned
the child on the breast of its mother. It is no mere analogy
to suppose that human senescence is the result of a slow but
chronic poisoning of the organism. Such poisons, if not
completely destroyed or eliminated, weaken the tissues, the
functions of which become altered or enfeebled, so that,
1 Fuss, Der Greisenbogen, in Virchotv's Archi-v, 1905, vol. clxxxii. p.
407 ; S. Toufesco, Sur le cristallin, Paris, 1906.
2 Edmond Fournier, Stigmates dystrophiques de PhMdosyphilis, Paris,
1898, p. 4. *
38 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
amongst other changes, there is deposition of fatty matter.
The phagocytes resist the influence of invading poisons
better than any of the other cells of the body and some-
times are stimulated by them. The general result of
such conditions is that there comes to be a struggle between
the higher cells and the phagocytes in which the latter have
the advantage.
The answer to the question as to whether our senescence
can be ameliorated must be approached from several points
of view. This course I shall now follow.
PART II
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL
KINGDOM
I
THEORIES OF LONGEVITY
Relation between longevity and size Longevity and the
period of growth Longevity and the doubling in weight
after birth Longevity and rate of reproduction Probable
relation between longevity and the nature of the food
THE duration of the life of animals varies within very
wide limits. Some, as for instance, the males of certain
wheel animalculae (Rotifera) complete their cycle of life
from birth to death in 50 or 60 hours, whilst others, like
some reptiles, live more than 100 years, and quite possibly
may live for two or three centuries.
Enquiry has been made for many years as to whether
there are laws governing these different durations of life.
Even the most casual observation of domesticated animals
has shown that, as a general rule, small animals do not
live so long as large ones ; mice, guinea pigs, and rabbits
for instance, have shorter lives than geese, ducks, and
sheep, whilst these again are survived by horses, deer,
and camels. Of all the mammals which have lived under
the protection of man, the elephant is at once the largest,
and the most long-lived.
However, it is not difficult to show that there is no
absolute relation between size and longevity,' since parrots,
ravens, and geese live much longer than many mammals,
and than some much larger birds.
40 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
As a general rule it may be said that a large animal takes
more time than a small one to reach maturity, and it has
been inferred from this that the length of the periods of
gestation and of growth were in proportion to the longe-
vity. Buffon 1 long ago stated his opinion that the " total
duration of life bore some definite relation to the length
of the period of growth." Therefore, as the period of
growth is, so to say^ inherent in the species, longevity
would have to be regarded as a very stable phenomenon.
Just as any species has acquired a fixed and practically
invariable size, so it would have acquired a definite longe-
vity. Buffon, therefore, thought that the duration of life
did not depend on habits or mode of life, or on the nature
of food, that, in fact, nothing could change its rigid laws,
except an excess of nourishment.
Taking as his standard the total period of development
of the body, Buffon came to the conclusion that the dura-
tion of life is six or seven times that of the period of
growth. Man, for instance, he said, who takes 14 years
to grow, can live 6 or 7 times that period, that is to say,
90 or roo years. The horse, which reaches its full size
in 4 years, can live 6 or 7 times that length of time, that
is to say from 25 to 30 years. The stag takes 5 or 6
years to grow, and reckoned in the same way, its longevity
should be 35 to 40 years.
Flourens 2 although supporting his principle, thought
that Buffon had been inexact in calculating the period
of growth. In his opinion a better result can be obtained
by taking the limit of growth as that age at which the
epiphyses of the long bones unite with the bones them-
1 Histoire natitrelle gtntrale et particultire, vol. ii. Paris, 1749.
2 De la longtvitl humaine et de la quantitt de vie sur le globe ', Paris,
1855.
THEORIES OF LONGEVITY 41
selves. Using such a mode of computation, Flourens laid
down that an animal lived 5 times the length of its period
of growth. Man, for instance, takes 20 years to grow, and
he can live for 5 times that space, that is to say, 100 years ;
the camel takes 8 to grow, and lives 5 times as long,
i.e., 40 years; the horse, 5 to grow, and lives 25 years.
However, even if we consider only the mammalia, it is
impossible to accept Flourens' law, without considerable
reserve. Weismann l has referred to the case of the horse,
which is completely adult at 4, but lives not merely 5
times that period, but 10 or even 12 times. Mice grow
extremely quickly, so that they are able to reproduce at
the age of 4 months. Even if we take 6 months as their
period of growth, their longevity of 5 years is twice as
long as it would be according to the rule of Flourens.
Amongst domesticated animals, the sheep is slow in reach-
ing maturity ; it does not acquire its adult set of teeth until
it is 5 years old, and cannot be regarded as adult until
then. None the less, at the age of 8 or 10 years, it loses
its teeth and begins to grow old, whilst by 14 it is quite
senile. 2 The longevity of the sheep, therefore, is not quite
three times its period of growth.
If we turn to other vertebrates, the variations in the
relation of growth and the duration of life are still greater.
Parrots, for instance, the longevity of which is extremely
great, grow very quickly. At the age of 2 years, they
have acquired the adult plumage and are able to repro-
duce, whilst the smaller species are in the same condition
at the age of one. Incubation, moreover, is very short,
not more than 25 days, and in some species not three
weeks. None the less, parrots are birds which enjoy a
1 Ueber die Dauer des Lebens, Jena, 1882, p. 4.
2 Brehm, La vie des animaux, Mammtjeres, vol. ii. p. 623.
42 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
quite remarkable longevity. The incubation period of
domestic geese is 30 days, and their period of growth is
also short. However, they may reach a great age, cases
of 80 years and of 100 years being on record. In contrast
with these, ostriches, the incubation period of which is
42 to 49 days, and which take 3 years to become adult,
have a relatively short life.
H. Milne-Edwards 1 many years ago contended that
there was no importance in the supposed law of relation
between gestation and longevity. He sums up his criticism
as follows : " Although the period of uterine life is longer
in the horse, that animal does not live so long as a human
being; and some birds, the incubation of which only lasts
a few weeks, can live more than a century."
Bunge 2 has recently taken up the study of the relations
between the duration of growth and longevity, and has
suggested a new means of investigation. He has observed
that the period in which the new-born mammal doubles
its weight is a good index of the rapidity of its growth.
He has shown that whilst a human child requires 180
days to reach double its weight at birth, the horse, the
longevity of which is very much less, doubles its weight
in 60 days; a calf takes only 47 days for this; a kid 15
days; a pig 14 days; a cat 9^; and a dog only 9 days.
Although these facts are very interesting, the exceptions
are too great to make it possible to base a law of longevity
upon them. The period of weight-doubling in the horse
is nearly 7 times longer than that in the dog, and yet the
longevity of the horse is not more than 3 times that of
the dog. The goat, which takes much longer than the
dog to double its weight, has a shorter total life.
1 Leqons sur la physiologic et P anatomic comparee, vol. ix. 1870,
p. 446.
2 Archivf. die gesammte Physiologic^ Bonn, 1903, vol. xcv. p. 606.
THEORIES OF LONGEVITY 43
I observed myself that new-born mice quadruple their
weight in the first 24 hours. The doubling of weight
in their case requires a time 36 times less long than that
of the cat, and yet the cat lives only 5 times as long as
the mouse.
It is fair to say, however, that Bunge himself does not
draw a definite conclusion from these figures and has
published them only to stimulate interest in the subject.
He is against the view of Flourens, and points out that
although the multiple 5 is valid for man, it is not so in
the case of the horse which finishes its growth in 4 years
and yet reaches the age of 40 much less often than human
beings attain that of 100 years.
Although it is impossible to admit the existence of
exact relations between size and the period of growth on
the one side, and longevity on the other, in the mode
which Buffon and Flourens have followed, it is none the
less true that there is something intrinsic in each kind
of animal which sets a definite limit to the length of years
it can attain. The purely physiological conditions which
determine this limit leave room for a considerable amount
of variation in longevity. Duration of life therefore, is
a character which can be influenced by the environment.
Weismann in his well-known essay on the duration of
life, has laid stress on this side of the problem. Longevity,
according to him, although in the last resort depending
on the physiological properties of the cells of which the
organism is composed, can be adapted to the conditions
of existence and influenced by natural selection, like other
characters useful for the existence of the species.
If a species is to remain in existence, its members must
be able to reproduce and the progeny must be able to
reach adult life so that they in their turn may reproduce.
Now, it happens that there are some animals the fecundity
44 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
of which is extremely limited. Most birds which are
adapted to aerial life, and the weight of which is therefore
to be kept down, lay very few eggs. This happens in
the case of birds of prey, such as eagles and vultures.
These birds nest only once a year, and generally rear two
or frequently only a single nestling. In such circum-
stances the duration of life becomes a factor in the preserva-
tion of the species, more important since eggs and chicks
are subject to many dangers. Eggs are devoured by many
kinds of animals, whilst unseasonable cold may kill the
chicks. If the members of such a species were incapable of
living long, the unfavourable conditions of life would soon
Jead to extinction. Those animals which reproduce rapidly
generally have a relatively brief duration of life. Mice, rats,
rabbits, and many other rodents seldom live more than 5 or
10 years, but reproduce with enormous rapidity. It is almost
possible to imagine that there is some sort of intimate link,
possibly physiological, between longevity and low fertility.
It is a current opinion that reproduction wastes the maternal
organism and that mothers of many children grow old
prematurely and seldom reach an advanced age. This
would seem to mean that fecundity was the cause of the
short duration of life. However, we must guard ourselves
against such a theory. Longevity, at least in the case of
vertebrate animals, differs extremely little in the two sexes,
although the cost of the new generation to the adult
organism is very much greater in the case of the female
than of the male parent. None the less, females frequently
reach a great age, especially in the human race where
women reach 100 years, or live beyond that time, much
more often than men.
Low fertility, however, cannot itself be regarded as a
cause of longevity, as there are some very fertile animals
THEORIES OF LONGEVITY 45
which none the less attain great ages. There are parrots
which lay two or three times a year, producing six to nine
eggs in each clutch. The ducks (Anatidae) are distinguished
for considerable longevity and very high fertility, each
nest containing rarely less than six and sometimes as many
as sixteen eggs. The common Sheldrake lays from twenty
to thirty eggs. Tame ducks, in some parts of the tropics,
lay an egg daily throughout the season. Wild ducks lay
from seven to fourteen eggs in one nest. Ducks and geese,
none the less, frequently attain considerable ages, ducks
having been known to live for 29 years. Even the common
fowl, which is a notoriously prolific bird, may reach an age
of twenty to thirty years.
It will be said, however, that these birds are exposed to
many enemies during youth. Chickens, ducklings, and
goslings are ready prey for hawks, foxes and small carni-
vora. The longevity is possibly to be explained as an
adaptation for the preservation of the species by compen-
sating for the great destruction of the young. Weismann
explains in this way the longevity of many aquatic birds
and other creatures that are much preyed on. It must be
noted, however, that the longevity cannot depend on the
risks run by the young birds, but must have arisen in-
dependently. If this had not occurred, creatures, the young
of which are destroyed in great numbers, would have ceased
to exist, as many species have disappeared in geological
time. The longevity of prolific animals, the young of
which are destroyed in numbers, must be due to some
cause which is neither fertility nor the destruction of their
offspring. This cause must be sought in the physiological
processes of the organism and can be attributed neither to
the length of the period of growth nor to the size attained
by the adults.
46 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
After having discussed various theories of the cause of
the duration of life, M. Oustalet, 1 in a most interesting essay
on the longevity of vertebrates, came to the conclusion that
diet was the chief factor. He thinks that there is a
" definite relation between diet and longevity. For the most
part herbivorous animals live longer than carnivorous
forms, probably because the former find their food with
ease and regularity, whilst the latter alternate between
semi-starvation and repletion." There are certainly many
instances which give support to the view. Elephants and
parrots, for instance, are vegetarian and reach very great
ages. On the other hand, there exist long-living carni-
vorous animals. Many observations have made it certain
that owls and eagles reach great ages, and these birds live
on animal food. Ravens, which live on carrion, are also
notorious for the duration of their lives. There is no exact
knowledge as to the ages reached by crocodiles, but
although these live on flesh, it is certain that their longevity
is great.
We must seek elsewhere for the real factors that control
duration of life. Before stating my conclusion, I will
review what is known as to the duration of life of different
animals.
1 La Nature, May 12, 1900, p. 378.
II.
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
Longevity in the lower animals Instances of long life in
sea-anemones and other invertebrates Duration of life of
insects Duration of life of " cold-blooded " vertebrates
Duration of life of birds Duration of life of mammals
Inequality of the duration of life in males and females
Relations between longevity and fertility of the organism
IT is wonderful to what an extent the duration of life varies
amongst animals, the slightest examination of the facts
showing that very many factors must be involved.
As the higher animals are nearly always larger than
invertebrates, if there be a definite relation between long-
evity and size, one would expect to find that vertebrates
live longer than invertebrates. However, this is not the
case. Amongst animals of extremely simple organisation,
there are some which reach a great age. A striking
example of this is found in sea-anemones. These animals
have a very simple structure, without a separate digestive
canal, and with a badly developed, diffused nervous system,
and yet have lived very long in captivity. More than forty
years ago, I remember having seen in the possession of
M. Lloyd, the Director of the Aquarium at Hamburg, an
anemone that he had kept alive for several dozen years 'in
a glass bowl. Another sea-anemone, belonging to the
species Actinia mesembryanthemum, is known to have
lived 66 years. It was captured in 1828 by Dalyell, a
48 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Scottish zoologist, and was then quite adult, and probably
about 7 years old. It survived its owner for 36 years, and
died in Edinburgh in 1887, the cause of death being un-
known. Although they are thus capable of living so long,
the rate of growth of members of this species is rapid, and
their fertility is very high. According to Dalyell, these
anemones reach the adult condition in 15 months. The
specimen in his possession, in the 20 years from 1828 to
1848 produced 334 larvae, then after a period of sterility it
gave birth, in one night (1857) to 2 3 young anemones.
This extraordinary prolificness decreased with age, but even
when it was 58 years old it used to produce from 5 to 20 at
a time. In the seven years from 1872 onwards, it gave birth
to 150 young anemones. 1 This animal, which certainly
was not more than the fortieth or the fiftieth of the weight
of an adult rabbit, lived six or seven times as long.
Ashworth and Nelson Annandale have published their
observations on another sea-anemone, of the species Sagartia
troglodytes, which was 50 years old. It differed from
younger examples only in being less prolific.
There are other polyps, such as Flabellum, which do not
live more than 24 years, although we have no knowledge as
to the cause of the different duration of life.
The variation in the length of the life of molluscs and
insects is extremely great. Some species of gasteropods
(Vitrina, Succinea) live only a very few years, whilst
others (Natica heros) can reach thirty years. Some of the
marine bivalves, as for instance, Tridacna gigas, can live
to sixty or a hundred years. 2
Insects are animals as variable in their duration of life as
they are in other respects. Some live only a few weeks;
1 Ashworth and Annandale, Proceedings of the R. Society of Edinburgh,
vol. xxv. part iv. 1904.
' l Ilrcnn's Klassen u. Ordnungen des Thierreichs, vol. iii. p. 466.
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 49
some of the plant-lice, for instance, die in a month. In
the same order of Insects, however, (Hemiptera) there are
species of cicada which live thirteen to seventeen years, that
is to say, much longer than such little Rodents as rats,
mice, and guinea-pigs. The larva of an American species
spends seventeen years buried in the ground in orchards,
where it feeds on the roots of apple trees, and the species is
known as Cicada septemdecim, because of this duration of
life. In the adult stage the insect lives little more than a
month, just time enough to lay the eggs, and bring into
the world the new generation, which in its turn will not
appear above ground until after another period of seven-
teen years.
Between these extremes of long and short life, there is
to be found amongst insects almost every gradation of
longevity. Science, in its present state, has failed to find
any law governing these facts. Rules which hold good up
to a certain point in the case of the higher animals break
down in their application to insects. The large grass-
hoppers and locusts, for instance, live a much shorter time
than many minute beetles. Queen bees, the fertility of
which is very great, live two or three years and may reach
a fifth year, whilst worker bees, which are infertile, die in
the first year of their existence. Female ants, although
these are small and extremely prolific, reach the age of
seven years. 1
We know so little about the physiological processes of
insects, that we cannot as yet make even a guess at the
cause of this great variation in their longevity. It is more
probable that we shall find some explanation in the case of
vertebrates concerning which we know much more.
Analysis of the facts shows that whilst in the evolution
1 Weismann, The Duration of Life, in "Essays on Heredity (English
translation), Oxford, 1889.
E
5 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
from fish to mammal there has been a great increase in
complexity of organisation, there has at the same time been
a reduction in the duration of life. As a general rule, it
may be laid down that the lower vertebrates live longer
than mammals.
The facts about the longevity of fish are not very numer-
ous, but it seems clear that these animals reach a great
age. The ancient Romans, who used to keep eels in
aquaria, have noted that these fish would live for more than
sixty years. There is reason to believe that salmon can
live for a century, whilst pike live much longer. There is,
for instance, the much quoted instance of the pike stated
by Gessner to have been captured in 1230 and to have lived
for 267 years afterwards. Carps are regarded as equally
long lived, Buffon setting down their period of life as 150
years. There is a popular idea that the carp in the lakes
at Fontainebleau and Chantilly are several centuries old,
but E. Blanchard throws doubt on the accuracy of this esti-
mate, inasmuch as during revolutionary times most of the
carp were eaten when the palaces were overrun by the popu-
lace. There is no doubt, however, that the life of carp
may be very long indeed. Not very much is known about
the duration of life in batrachians, but it is certain at least
that some small frogs may live twelve or sixteen years, and
toads as many as thirty-six years.
More is known about the life of reptiles. Crocodiles and
caymans, which are large and which grow very slowly,
attain great ages. In the Paris Museum of Natural History
there are crocodiles which have been kept for more than
forty years without showing signs of senescence. Turtles,
although they are smaller than crocodiles, live still longer.
A tortoise has lived for eighty years in the garden of the
Governor of Cape Town, and is believed to have reached
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 5 1
the age of two hundred years. Another tortoise, a native
of the Galapagos Islands, is known to be 175 years old,
whilst a specimen in the London Zoological Gardens is 150
years old. A land tortoise (Testudo marginata) has been
kept in Norfolk, England, for a century. I am informed
that in the Archbishop's palace at Canterbury, there is to
be seen the carapace of a tortoise which was brought to the
Palace in 1623 and which lived there for 107 years. 1 Another
tortoise, brought to Fulham by Archbishop Laud, lived in
the Palace for 128 years. I have already referred to a
specimen of Testudo mauritanica, the history of which is
known for 86 years, but which is probably much older.
Very little is known as to the longevity of lizards and
serpents, but it may be inferred from what I have said about
other reptiles that reptiles as a class are able to reach great
ages.
It is an easy inference that the great duration of life in
cold-blooded animals is associated with the slowness of
the physiological processes in these creatures. The circu-
lation, for instance, is so slow, that the heart of a tortoise
beats only 20 to 25 times in a minute. Weismann has
suggested that one of the factors influencing the duration
of life is the rapidity or slowness of the vital activities, the
times taken by the processes of absorption and nutrition.
On the other hand, the blood is hot and the vital activities
are rapid in birds, and yet birds may attain great ages.
Although in the last chapter I gave a number of examples,
the subject is so important that I propose to go further into
details. The possibility of this is due to an admirable set
of details brought together by Mr. J. H. Gurney. 2 In his
1 Oustalet, "La Longtvitt chez les Animaux ver&fMs," La Nature,
May 12, 1900, p. 378.
2 " On the Comparative Ages to which Birds tive," The Ibis, Jan.,
1899, vol. v. p. 19.
E 2
52 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
list, in which are included more than fifty species of birds,
the lowest figures are from eight and a half to nine years
(Podargus cuvieri, Chelidon urbica), and a duration of life
so short is an exception, a period of from fifteen to twenty
years being more common. Canaries have lived in cap-
tivity from 17 to 20 years, and goldfinches up to 23 years.
Field larks have lived for 24 years, the Lesser Black-backed
Gull 31 years and the Herring Gull 44 years. Birds of
medium size may live for several dozens of years, whether
they live on animal or on vegetable food, whether they are
prolific or lay very few eggs. I will quote only a few
instances. Of forty parrots the minimum and maximum
ages were respectively 15 and 81 years, and the average 43
years. Without accepting the truth of the story mentioned
by Humboldt according to which certain parrots survived
an extinct race of Indians, at least we may be certain that
great ages have sometimes been reached by these birds.
Levaillant mentions a parrot (Psittacus erithaceus) which
lost its memory at the age of 60 years, its sight at 90
years, and which died aged 93 years. Another individual,
probably of the same species, is reported by J. Jennings
to have reached the age of 77. Jones, Layard, and Butler
are the authorities for instances of Sulphur-crested Cocka-
toos having reached respectively 30, 72 and 81 years. M.
Abrahams states that an Amazon (Chrysotis amasonica)
lived 1 02 years. I myself have observed two cases of great
longevity in the same species of parrot. One of these birds
died at the age of 82 years, apparently simply from old
age, whilst the other, which was in my possession for
several years before it died at the age of 70 to 75 years, was
vigorous, showing no signs of senility, but died of pneu-
monia.
Mr. Gurney found that parrots were not the only birds
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 53
capable of reaching a great age. One raven reached 69
years and another 50, an Eagle-owl (Bubo maximus) 68
years, another 53, a condor 52, an imperial eagle 56, a com-
mon heron 60, a wild goose 80, and a common swan 70
years. None of these examples approaches the legendary
three centuries attributed to the swan, but it is evident that
many different kinds of birds may attain great age. I can
add some cases to those of Mr. Gurney. In the Royal Park
at Schonbrunn, near Vienna, a white-headed vulture (Neo-
phron percnopterus) died aged 118 years, a golden eagle
(Aquila chrysaetus) aged 104, and another aged 80 (accord-
ing to Oustalet). Mr. Pycraft (Country Life, June 25th,
1904) reported that a female eagle, captured in Norway in
1829, had been brought to England and had lived for 75
years. In the last thirty years of its life, it had produced
ninety eggs. The same writer mentions the case of a falcon
having lived to 162 years.
The collection of facts that I have passed in review make
it manifest that birds may have a great duration of life,
but that reptiles surpass them in this respect. Birds cer-
tainly do not reach the very great ages of crocodiles and
tortoises.
Longevity, therefore, is reduced as we ascend in the
scale of vertebrate life. We find a still greater reduction
when we turn from birds to mammals. Some mammals,
it is true, may live as long as birds. Elephants are a
good instance. It used to be thought that these giant
mammals could live three or four centuries, but I can find
no confirmation of the legend, which seems as mythical
as that relating to the life of swans. There are no exact
data as to the ages reached by wild elephants, but it has
been stated that in captivity an elephant rarely but occa-
sionally has completed its century. In zoological gardens
54 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
and in good menageries, where elephants are well cared
for, they seldom live more than 20 to 25 years. Chevrette,
an African elephant presented to the Jardin des Plantes
by Mehemet AH, in 1825, lived for only 30 years. In the
official list of the Indian Government, which gives the
fteaths of elephants, it appears that of 138 examples, only
one lived more than 20 years after it had been purchased
(Brehm's Mammals).
Flourens, using his own formula, assigned the age of
150 years to elephants as their epiphyses do not fuse with
the long bones until the age of 30. So far, I know 7 of no
fact to support the conclusion, although it seems fairly well
established that occasionally an elephant may reach a
century. It is stated that one elephant was in service
throughout the whole period of more than 140 years in
which Ceylon was occupied by the Dutch. This elephant
was found in the stables in 1656. Natives with special
knowledge of elephants set down their duration of life
as from 80 to 150 years, but say that they begin to grow
old at from 50 to 60 years of age. My general conclusion
from the facts is that the life of these very large mammals
is about the same as that of man who is very much
smaller.
Centenarians, extremely rare amongst elephants, do not
appear to exist in any other kind of mammals except man.
The rhinoceros, another large mammal which is a native
of the same countries as the elephant, does not reach a
great age. According to Oustalet an Indian rhinoceros
died in the menagerie of the Paris Museum at about the
age of 25 years, and showed all the signs of senility.
Another Indian rhinoceros lived for 37 years in the London
Zoological Gardens. Grindon has stated his opinion that
the rhinoceros may live for 70 or 80 years, but this seems
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 55
rather an inference from the slowness of growth than a
statement of observed fact.
Horses and cattle are large animals, hut do not enjoy
very long lives. The usual duration of life in horses is
from 15 to 30 years. They begin to grow old about 10
years, and in very rare cases may reach 40 or more. A
Welsh pony is said to have reached the age of sixty, but
such a case is excessively rare. Two other extreme cases
are that of a horse belonging to the Bishop of Metz which
died at the age of 50 years, and the charger of Field-
Marshal Lacy which died at 46.
The duration of life of cattle is still shorter. Domestic
cattle show the first sign of age, a yellow discoloration
of the teeth, when five years old. In the sixteenth to
eighteenth year the teeth fall out, or break, and the cow
ceases to give milk, whilst the bull has lost reproductive
power. According to Brehm, cattle live for 25 to 30 years
or more. Although the duration of life is short, cattle
are not prolific. The gestation period of a cow approaches
that of the human race (242-287 days), and there is only
one birth a year. The total period of reproductivity lasts
only a few years.
The sheep, another domesticated Ruminant, has a life
even shorter. According to Grindon, sheep do not live
longer than 12 years as a rule, but may reach 14 years,
which in their case would be extreme age, as they generally
lose their teeth at from 8 to 10 years.
Some Ruminants, such as camels and deer, apparently
live longer than sheep or cattle, but I do not know exact
facts about them.
The short life of domesticated carnivorous animals is
well known. Dogs seldom live more than 16 or 18 years,
and even before that,- at an age of from 10 to 12, they
56 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
usually show plain signs of senility. Jonatt has mentioned
as an extreme rarity a dog of 22 years of age, and Sir E.
Ray Lankester (Comparative Longevity, p. 60) cites
another instance, in this case the age being 34 years. The
oldest dog that I have been able to procure died at the
age of 22.
It is generally believed that cats do not live so long as
dogs. The average age which they may attain is usually
thought to be 10 or 12 years, but certainly a cat of that
age has not the decrepid appearance of an old dog. Thanks
to the kindness of M. Barrier, the Director of the Ecole
d'Alfort, I have had in my possession a cat 23 years old.
It appeared to be quite vigorous, and died from cancer
in the liver.
Most rodents, particularly the domesticated kinds, are
extremely prolific and very short lived. It is extremely
rare for a rabbit to reach the age of 10 years, whilst 7
years is the utmost limit for a guinea-pig. Mice, so far
as I can ascertain, do not live more than 5 or 6 years.
It is plain from the facts that I have brought together,
that mammals, whether they are large or small, as a rule,
have shorter lives than birds. It is probable, therefore,
that there is something in the structure of mammals which
has brought about a shortening in the duration of their
lives.
Whilst most of the lower vertebrates, and all birds,
reproduce by laying eggs, the vast majority of mammals
are viviparous. As the tax on the parent organism is
greater when the young are produced alive than when
eggs are laid, it might be thought that in this difference
lay the cause of the shorter life of mammals. It is well
known that an animal may be made feeble by too great
fecundity, and it is conceivable that the kind of parasitic
LONGEVITY IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 57
life of the embryos within the body of the mother may
weaken her system.
There are many facts, however, which make it impos-
sible to accept such a view. The longevity of mammals
is nearly equal in the two sexes, although the tax on the
organism caused by reproduction is much greater in the
case of females than in males. Longevity, however,
cannot be regarded as a character stable in each species
and necessarily identical in the two sexes. The animal
kingdom presents many cases of disparity in this respect,
the difference in longevity in the tw ; o sexes being specially
striking in species of insects. Generally, the females live
longer than the males, as, for instance, amongst the Strep-
si ptera, where the females have 64 times the duration of
life of the males. On the other hand, amongst butterflies,
there are cases (e.g., Aglia tau) where the males live longer
than the females. In the human race, there is a difference
in the longevity of the sexes, the females having the
advantage.
As in most cases of disparity in the duration of life the
female lives longer than the male, it is plain that the differ-
ence cannot be assigned to the drain on the organism
caused by reproduction, which, of course, is much greater
in females.
Moreover, a closer scrutiny of the facts shows that
although mammals do not live so long as birds, the repro-
ductive drain is greater in the case of birds.
It is well known that the productivity of an animal is
not necessarily identical with its fecundity. Fish or frogs
which lay thousands of eggs at a time (a pike, for example,
produces 130,000) are obviously more prolific than, for
instance, a sparrow which lays only 18 eggs in a year,
or than a rabbit, which in the same time gives birth to
5 8 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
from 25 to 50. However, to produce this much smaller
quantity of eggs or of young, the sparrow and the rabbit
(I have chosen the most prolific bird and mammal) expend
a much larger quantity of material than the frog or the
fish. The sparrow and the rabbit employ in producing
their progeny a bulk of material greater than the weight
of their body, whilst the enormous quantity of eggs laid
by the frog does not weigh more than one-seventh part of
the body of the frog. It may be laid down, as a general
rule, that although fecundity, that is to say the number
of eggs or of young which are produced, diminishes as
the organism becomes more complex, the productivity on
the other hand increases, expressed in percentage of weight.
The productivity, which is not more than 18 per cent, in
batrachia, reaches 50 per cent, in reptiles, 74 per cent,
in mammals, and 82 per cent, in birds.
It is plain that if reproduction shortens the life of
mammals by weakening the organism, it must be the
productivity, not the fecundity, which is the important
factor. I have just shown that productivity is greater in
birds than in mammals, and in consequence it cannot be
on account of any greater burden of reproduction that
mammals have a shorter life than birds. The shortness
of mammalian life, again, cannot be attributed to the fact
that mammals give birth to young, whilst the long-lived
reptiles and birds produce eggs, because the longevity of
the males, which produce neither young nor eggs, is none
the less practically equal to that of the females of the same
species. The reason of the short life of mammals must
be sought for elsewhere.
Ill
THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY
Relations between longevity and the structure of the digestive
system The Caeca in birds The large intestine of mammals
Function of the large intestine The intestinal microbes
and their agency in producing auto-intoxication and auto-
infection in the organism Passage of microbes through the
intestinal wall
WE have seen that the duration of life in mammals is
relatively shorter than that in birds, and in the so-called
" cold-blooded " vertebrates. No indication as to the cause
of this difference can be found in the structure of the organs
of circulation, respiration, or urinary secretion, or in the
nervous or sexual apparatus. The key to the problem is
to be found in the organs of digestion.
In reviewing the anatomical structure of the digestive
apparatus in the vertebrate series, one soon comes to the
striking fact that mammals are the only group in which the
large intestine is much developed. In fish, the large intes-
tine is the least important part of the digestive tube, being
little wider in calibre than the small intestine. Amongst
batrachia, where it is a relatively wide sack, it has begun
to assume some importance. In several reptiles it is still
larger, and may be provided with a lateral out-growth,
which is to be regarded as a caecum. In birtis, the large
intestine still remains relatively badly developed; it is
60 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
short and straight. In most birds, at the point where the
large intestine passes into the small intestine, there is a
pair of caeca, more or less developed. These caeca are
absent in climbing birds, such as the wood-pecker, the
oriole, and many others. They are reduced to a pair of
tiny out-growths in the eagles, sparrow-hawks, and other
diurnal birds of prey, and in pigeons, and perching birds.
These organs are larger in the nocturnal birds of prey, in
gallinaceous birds, and in ducks, etc. 1
In the large running birds, such as ostriches, rheas, and
tinamous, the caeca are relatively largest. Thus, for
instance, in a rhea (Rhea americana) which I dissected, the
caeca were nearly two-thirds as long as the small intestine.
The latter was 1*65 m. in length, whereas one of the caeca
was roi m., and the other 0*95 m. The weight of the
two caeca with their contents was more than 10 per cent,
of the total weight of the bird.
Notwithstanding the exceptions, which are relatively
rare, the large intestine is badly developed in the case
of birds. On the other hand, it reaches its largest size
amongst mammals. In these animals, " only the posterior
portion of the latter, or rectum, which passes into the
pelvic cavity, corresponds to the large intestine of
lower Vertebrates; the remaining, and far larger part,
must be looked upon as a neomorph, and is called the
colon." 2
Gegenbaur, 3 another well-known authority on compara-
1 J. Maumus, " Les caecums des oiseaux," Annales des sciences naturel-
les, 902. See also P. Chalmers Mitchell, " On the Intestinal Tract of
Birds," Trans. Linnaan Soc. of London, vol. viii. part 7, 1901.
2 Weidersheim, Elements of the Comparative Anatomy of Vertebrates,
translated by \V. Newton Parker, p. 236, 1886.
3 Elements of Comparative Anatomy, English translation by F. Jeffrey
Bell, B.A., London, 1878, p. 562.
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY 61
tive anatomy, writes as follcv.s on this subject: "The
hind-gut is longest in the Maimv.- tr a, where it forms the
large intestine, and is distinguish 3 as such, from the
mid-gut, or small intestine. Owing ro its greater length,
it is arranged in coils, so that the terminal portion only
has the straight course taken by the hind-gut of other
Vertebrata."
The two series of facts are not to be disputed. On the
one hand mammals are shorter lived than birds and lower
vertebrates, on the other hand the large intestine is much
longer in them than in any other vertebrates. Is there
here any link of causality, binding the two Characters, or
is it a mere coincidence?
To answer the question we must turn to the function of
the large intestine in vertebrates. In the lower members
of the group (fish, batrachia, reptiles, birds, etc.), the
large intestine is not more than a mere reservoir for the
waste matter in the food. It takes no share in digestion,
as that is the function of the stomach and the small intes-
tine. Only the caecum can be thought to have some
digestive property. In reptiles, the lowest vertebrates in
which the caecum is present, it is so little differentiated
from the large intestine itself, that it is difficult to assign
to it any specialised function. In very many birds, how-
ever, the caeca are well separated from the main diges-
tive tube. The food material passes into them in con-
siderable quantities, and is retained there sufficiently long
for some digestive process to take place. M. Maumus
has found, in the caeca of birds, secretions which can dis-
solve albumen and invert sugar cane, but he has been
unable to make out that the caecal juice has any action
upon fatty matter. Such digestive power, however, is
slight, and when M. Maumus removed the caeca in fowls
62 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
and ducks, no evil consequences followed. As in many
birds the caeca are rudimentary and in others absent, it
may be inferred that these organs are useless, and are
in process of degeneration in the class. The caeca can
be regarded as playing an important part in the organism
only in the case of large running birds, where they are
very highly developed, but we have not precise informa-
tion as to their digestive function.
The variations in the structure in the large intestine
are greater in mammals than in birds. In some mammals,
the large intestine is a simple prolongation of the small
intestine, similar in calibre and in structure. In these con-
ditions it may fulfil a definite digestive function. Th.
Eimer 1 has determined that in insectivorous bats the
large intestine digests insects like the small intestine.
Such cases, however, are rare. In most mammals the
large intestine is sharply separated from the small intes-
tine by a valve, and opens directly into the caecum which
may be very large. In the horse, the caecum is an enormous
bag, cylindrical and tapering, generally well filled, and
holding on an average 35 litres. It is equally large in
many other herbivorous animals, such as the tapir, the
elephant, and most rodents. In such cases, the food
remains for a considerable time in the organ and without
doubt undergoes some digestive changes. In many other
mammals, particularly carnivorous forms, the caecum may
be quite absent, whilst in some, as for instance, the cat
and dog, it is very small ; in the latter cases its digestive
function must be non-existent or insignificant. 2
As for the large intestine itself, apart from the special
1 Virchov/s Archiv, 1869, vol. xlviii. p. 151.
* P. Chalmers Mitchell, " On the Intestinal Tract of Mammals," Trans.
Zool. Soc. of London, vol. xvii. part 5, 1905.
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY 63
cases, such as bats, it cannot fulfil any notable digestive
function. Th. Eimer was unable to find a proof of any
such action in rats and mice, and the very many investiga-
tions that have been made in the case of man seem to
have established the absence of digestive power in the
colon.
Dr. Stragesco, 1 in a recent investigation carried out
under the direction of the famous Russian physiologist
Pawloff, established that, in normal conditions, digestion
and assimilation of food are confined almost exclusively to
the small intestine in mammals, and that the large intes-
tine plays only the smallest part. It is only in certain
diseases of the digestive tract, in which, on account of
increased peristaltic action, the contents of the intestine
with the digestive juices are passed quickly from the small
intestine to the large intestine, that some digestive work is
done in the latter organ.
The large intestine (excluding the caecum), then, cannot
be regarded as an organ of digestion, although ab-
sorption of the liquids which have been formed in the
small intestine, may take place within its walls. It is
known that in the large intestine the contents of the gut
give up their water and assume the solid form of faecal
matter. However, whilst the mucous membrane of the
large intestine rapidly absorbs water, it has not a similar
action on other substances.
The question of the extent to which the large intestine
can absorb has been closely investigated, because of its
practical importance. It sometimes happens that invalids
cannot take food by the mouth, so that their life would be
in danger if it were not possible to supply them with food
1 Tra-vaux de la Socittt des mddecins russes a Saint- Pttersbourg.
September-October, 1905, p. 18 (in Russian).
64 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
otherwise. Attempts have been made to inject nutritive
substances through the skin, or, and this is a more usual
procedure, by the rectum. By such means the organism
can be kept alive for a certain time, but the absorbing
power of the large intestine is extremely small. Accord-
ing to Czerny and Lautschenberger l the entire colon of
the human being can absorb no more than 6 grammes of
albumen in 24 hours, an amount which, from the point of
view of nutrition, is very small. It was thought that the
large intestine might more rapidly absorb albuminous
material which had been previously digested and trans-
formed to peptones, but the experiments of Ewald 2 showed
that even in that case the absorption was very small.
According to more recent experiments of Heile, 3 carried
out upon dogs which had caecal fistulas, and in the case
of a man who had an artificial aperture in the colon, the
large intestine does not absorb undigested white of egg,
and absorbs water, cane sugar, and glucose only very im-
perfectly. The only substances which are rapidly ab-
sorbed through the wall of the colon are the alkaline fluids
from faecal matter. It is possible, however, to nourish
invalids by rectal injections of certain nutritious substances,
the most important of which is milk. 4
The large intestine, which has really very slight diges-
tive properties and cannot absorb any considerable bulk
of nutriment, is an organ which secretes mucus. The
latter serves to moisten the solid faecal material, so aiding
in its expulsion.
We must conclude, therefore, that the large intestine,
the organ so highly developed in mammals, is an apparatus
1 Virchow's Archiv, 1874, vol. lix, p. 161.
2 Zeitsckrift f. klinische. Median, 1887, vol. xii.
3 Mittheilungen a. d. Grenzgebieten d. Medicin u. Chirurgie, 1905.
vol. xiv.
4 Aldor, Centralblatt f. innere Medicin, 1898, p. 161.
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY 65
the general function of which is the preparation and elimi-
nation of the waste products of digestion. Why should
such an organ be so much more developed in mammals
than in the other vertebrates ?
In answer to the question, I have formed the theory that
the large intestine has been increased in mammals to make
it possible for these animals to run long distances without
having to stand still for defalcation. The organ, then,
would simply have the function of a reservoir of waste
matter.
Batrachia and reptiles lead a very idle life, and can move
slowly, sometimes because they are protected by poison
(toads, salamanders, serpents), sometimes because they
have a very hard shell (turtles), sometimes because they
are extremely powerful (crocodiles). Mammals, on the
other hand, have to move very actively to catch their prey,
or to escape from their enemies. Such activity has
become possible because of the high development of the
limbs, and because the capacity of the large intestine makes
possible the accumulation of waste matter for a consider-
able time.
In order to void the contents of the intestines, mammals
have to stand still and assume some particular position.
Each act of this kind is a definite risk in the struggle for
existence. A carnivorous mammal which, in the process
of hunting its prey, had to stop from time to time, would
be inferior to one which could pursue its course without
pausing. So, also, a herbivorous mammal, escaping from
an enemy by flight, would have the better chance of sur-
viving the less it was necessary for it to stand still.
According to such a view, the extreme development of
the large intestine would supply a real want in the struggle
for existence. M. Yves Delage, 1 the well-known biologist,
1 Lanntebiologique, 7th year, 1902. Paris, 1903, p. 590.
F
66 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
is unable to accept this hypothesis. He thinks that the
rectal enlargement would fulfil the purpose, and adds that
everyone has seen herbivorous animals pass their excre-
tions whilst running. The rectum of mammals, however,
cannot serve as a reservoir for waste matter, because as soon
as such matter reaches the rectum it excites the need of
excretion. The waste matter accumulates in the large in-
testine, from which it passes into the rectum at intervals.
When it has reached that region, a sensation is caused
which leads to defalcation.
M. Delage is not quite definite when he speaks of
mammals voiding their excretions whilst they are in
motion. A horse, harnessed to a vehicle, may defaecate
whilst it is walking or even running slowly. But these
animals cannot defaecate when in rapid motion, and com-
petent observers state that horses never do so whilst racing.
In zoological gardens, where animals have room to run
about, they stand still before emptying the rectum. M.
Ch. Debreuil, who keeps antelopes in a very large park
at Melun, has noticed that the excreta are always to be
found in masses and not scattered about as if they had been
discharged by animals in motion. Antelopes, which are
animals that run and leap extremely actively, have to come
to a standstill before discharging their small pellets of
deer-like excreta.
In the struggle for existence, when a mammal is pursuing
its prey or escaping its enemy, there is no question of the
leisurely movement of a horse harnessed to an omnibus or
cab, but the greatest possible activity is necessary. In
such circumstances the possession of an organ within which
the excreta could accumulate would be of real importance.
My theory of the origin of the mammalian large intestine
is intrinsically probable.
Although the capacity of the large intestine may
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY 67
preserve a mammal in emergencies, it is attended with
disadvantages that may shorten the actual duration of life.
The accumulation of waste matter, retained in the large
intestine for considerable periods, becomes a nidus for
microbes which produce fermentations and putrefaction
harmful to the organism. Although our knowledge of
the subject is far from complete, it is certain that the in-
testinal flora contains some microbes which damage health,
either by multiplying in the organism, or by poisoning it
with their secretions. Most of our knowledge on this
matter has come from the study of human patients.
Persons have been known who do not defalcate except
at intervals of several days, and who, none the less, do not
seem to suffer in health. But the opposite result is more
common. The retention of faecal matter for several days
very often brings harmful consequences. Organisms
which are in a feeble state from some other cause are speci-
ally susceptible to damage of the kind referred to. Infants
are frequently seriously ill as the result of constipati9n.
Dr. du Pasquier 1 describes such cases in the following
words : " The infant is leaden in hue, 'with sunken eyes,
dilated pupils, and pinched nostrils. The temperature may
reach nearly 104 Fahr. ; the pulse is rapid, feeble, and often
irregular. Restlessness, insomnia, sometimes convulsions,
stiffness of the neck and strabism show that the nervous
system is being poisoned by toxins, and even collapse may
be reached. The foul and dry tongue, the vomiting and
fetid discharges show the disturbance of the digestive tract.
Very often an eruption appears, as described by Hutinel,
chiefly on the back and buttocks, the front of the thighs and "
fore-arms." The illness may lead to death but is generally
cured by simple purging.
1 Gazette des Hopitaux, 1904, p. 715.
F 2
68 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Women in pregnancy and childbirth frequently suffer
much as the result of retention of faecal matter, and
physicians are familiar with the symptoms, which have
been described as follows by M. Bouchet 1 : "After
normal parturition, in the course of which the usual anti-
septic precautions have been fully pursued, and where
delivery has been complete and natural, occasionally the
patient is seized with chill and headache. The breath is
fetid and the tongue foul. The temperature, taken in the
axilla, is nearly 101 Fahr. The abdomen is inflated and
painful in the umbilical region. Palpation in the iliac
fossae reveals lumps or consolidations along the colon.
Thirst is intense, and there is complete anorexy. On ques-
tioning, it is found that there has not been defalcation for
several days. The treatment consists of purgatives,
enemas, and milk diet. In the next few days the bowels
are emptied freely, the abdominal pain ceases, the tempera-
ture becomes lower, appetite is restored, and the patient
recovers."
Those who suffer from affections of the heart, liver, or
kidneys are specially susceptible to the evil results of re-
tained faecal matter. In such patients an error of diet or
constipation may bring about most serious consequences.
Such facts are well known to physicians, and it has been
established that complete emptying of the lower bowels
leads at once to favourable symptoms. From the other
side, it has been shown by experiment that artificial reten-
tion of the faeces by ligature of the rectum puts the body
in a grave condition.
If we collect our knowledge of all the facts, we cannot
doubt but that the cause of the evil is multiplication of
1 Accidents dus & la Constipation pendant la Grossesse, F Accouchement
et les Suites des Conches. Thse, Paris, 1902, p. 32.
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY 69
microbes in the contents of the large intestine. When the
faecal matter is free from microbes, as is the case with the
meconium of the foetus or new-born infant, it is not a
source of danger to the organism. The waste of cells and
the secretions which are added to the undigested food
cannot do any harm. Amongst the microbes of the gut,
there are some that are inoffensive, but others are known to
have pernicious properties.
The ill-health which follows retention of faecal matter is
certainly due to the action of some of the microbes of the
gut. There are difficulties, however, in determining the
precise mode of action of these microbes. It is generally
believed that they form poisonous substances which are
absorbed by the walls of the intestine and so pass into the
system. The phrase auto-intoxication as applied to in-
fants, women in labour, and patients affected with diseases
of the heart, liver, or kidneys, is based on this interpreta-
tion of the morbid processes involved. Attempts have been
made to isolate and study the poisons in question, but there
are many difficulties in the way. To distinguish between the
actions of the poisons and of the microbes themselves, the
latter have been destroyed by heat or by antiseptics, or been
removed by filtration. Such methods, however, may alter
the poisons and so are inconclusive. MM. Charron and
Le Play l have tried to obtain exact results by heating the
intestinal microbes to a temperature of about 136 Fahr., a
process which probably does not seriously deteriorate the
microbial poisons. Such material, injected into the veins
of rabbits in large quantities, rapidly produced death, or in
smaller quantities, proportionate ill-health.
Kukula 2 has tried to produce this toxic action in animals,
1 Comptes rendus de PAcademie des Sciences, Paris, 1905, 10 July,
p. 136. a Archiv.f. klinische Chirurgie, 1901, vol. Ixiii, p. 773.
70 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
employing microbial secretions obtained from cases of in-
testinal obstruction. He succeeded in producing serious
symptoms, such as vomiting and curvature of the neck
and back, in fact, precisely the sequence of events familiar
in cases of obstruction of the bowels or other retentions of
faecal matter.
Some of the products of the intestinal flora are un-
doubtedly toxic, such as the benzol derivatives (phenol,
etc.) ammonium and other salts. Many of these toxins
have been insufficiently studied, but it is well known that
certain of them can be absorbed by the wall of the gut and
act as poisons. A well known case is the toxin of botulism
which was isolated and studied by M. van Ermenghem. 1
The poison, the product of a microbe which causes serious
intestinal disturbance, is so fatal that a single drop given
to a rabbit produces death after symptoms similar to those
observed in cases of human beings poisoned by stale food.
Butyric acid and the products of albuminous putrefaction
are amongst the most pernicious of the microbial poisons
produced in the large intestine. It is familiar that digestive
disturbance is frequently associated with discharges of
sulphuretted hydrogen and putrid excreta, and there is no
doubt but that the microbes of putrefaction are the cause of
these symptoms.
It has been assumed for long that the retention of faecal
matter tends to putrefactive changes in the intestines, and
that the evil consequences of constipation are due to this.
Recently, however, bacteriologists have criticised this
accepted view, on account of the small number of microbes
found in the excreta of constipated persons. Strasburger
was the first to establish the fact, and his associate, Schmidt,
1 Kolle u. Wassermann, Handb. d. pathogenen Mikro-organismen, vol. ii,
1903, p. 678.
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND SENILITY 71
showed that putrefaction did not follow when readily putre-
scible substances were infected with material taken from
cases of constipation. However, notwithstanding the
exactness of these facts, I cannot accept the inference which
has been drawn from them. The excreta discharged
naturally in cases of constipation do not give a correct
indication of the conditions inside the gut; whilst such
matter contains few microbes, the substance removed after
injection by an enema is extremely rich in bacteria. More-
over, analysis of the urine, in cases of constipation, shows
an excess of the sulpho-conjugate ethers which are
known to be products of intestinal putrefaction.
Not only is there auto-intoxication from the microbial
poisons absorbed in cases of constipation, but microbes
themselves may pass through the walls of the intestine and
enter the blood. In the maladies that are the result of
constipation some of the symptoms recall those of direct
infection, and it is highly probable that, if special investiga-
tions were made, microbes of intestinal origin would be
found in the blood of the sick children and the pregnant
or parturient women whose symptoms I have described
above.
The question as to the passage of microbes through the
intestinal walls is one of the most controversial of bacterio-
logical problems, and there is little agreement in the numer-
ous publications regarding it. None the less, it is far from
impossible to get a general idea of what goes on in an
intestinal tract richly charged with microbes.
Although the intestinal wall in an intact state offers a
substantial obstacle to the passage of bacteria, it is incon-
testable that some of these pass through it into the organs
and the blood. Numerous experiments performed on dif-
ferent kinds of animals (horses, dogs, rabbits, etc.) show
72 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
that some of the microbes taken with food traverse the wall
of the alimentary canal and come to occupy the adjacent
lymphatic glands, the lungs, the spleen and the liver,
whilst they are occasionally found in the blood and lymph.
Discussion has taken place as to whether the passage takes
place when the wall of the gut is absolutely intact or only
when it is injured to however small an extent. It would
be extremely difficult to settle the question definitely, but
it is easy to see that it has little practical bearing. It is
known that the wall of the gut is damaged extremely
easily, so that the bluntest sound can hardly be passed into
the stomach without making a wound through which
microbes can pass into the tissues and blood. In the
ordinary course of life, the delicate wall of the gut must
often undergo slight wounding, and the frequent presence
of microbes in the mesenteric ganglia of healthy animals
shows clearly what takes place. 1
It is indubitable, therefore, that the intestinal microbes
or their poisons may reach the system generally and bring
harm to it. I infer from the facts that the more a digestive
tract is charged with microbes, the more it is a source of
harm capable of shortening life.
As the large intestine not only is the part of the digestive
tube most richly charged with microbes, but is relatively
more capacious in mammals than in any other vertebrates,
it is a just inference that the duration of life of mammals
has been notably shortened as the result of chronic poison-
ing from an abundant intestinal flora.
1 Ficker, in the Archiv. fur Hygiene, vol. Hi, p. 179, has recently
published the results of an investigation into this.
IV
MICROBES AS THE CAUSE OF SENILITY
Relations between longevity and the intestinal flora Rumi-
nants The Horse Intestinal flora of birds Intestinal
flora of cursorial birds Duration of life in cursorial birds
Flying mammals Intestinal flora and longevity of bats
Some exceptions to the rule Resistance of the lower verte-
brates to certain intestinal microbes
IN the actual state of our knowledge it is impossible to
make a final examination of my hypothesis, as there are
many factors about which we are incompletely informed.
Nevertheless, it is possible to confront the hypothesis with
a large number of accurately established facts.
Although the life of most mammals is relatively short,
there are to be found in the group some which live rela-
tively long, as well as others whose life is short. The
elephant is an example of the long-lived mammals, whilst
ruminants are short-lived forms. In the last chapter, I
stated that sheep and cattle became senile at an early age,
and did not live long. They are striking exceptions to the
rule according to which the duration of life is in direct rela-
tion with the size and length of the period of growth. The
cow, which is much larger than a woman, and the time of
gestation of which is about the same, or a little longer,
acquires its teeth at four years old, and becomes senile at an
early age ; it is quite old at between sixteen and seventeen,
74 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
an age when a woman is hardly adult ; at the age of thirty,
practically the extreme limit for bovine animals, a woman is
in full vigour.
The precocious old age of ruminants, the constitution of
which is well understood, and which are carefully tended,
coincides with an extraordinary richness of the intestinal
flora. Food remains for a long time in the complicated
stomach of these animals, and afterwards the digested
masses remain still longer in the large intestine. Accord-
ing to Stohmann and Weiske, 1 in the case of sheep it is a
week until the remains of a particular meal have finally
left the body of the animal. The excreta of sheep, normally
solid, do not betray any special putrefaction in the intes-
tine, but if the body is opened there is abundant evidence
of the process. The intestinal contents are richly charged
with microbes and give off a strong odour of putrefaction.
It is not surprising that under these conditions, the life of
sheep should be short.
Another large herbivorous animal, the horse, also dies
young, after a premature old age. Although it does not
ruminate and possesses a simple stomach, the process of
digestion is slow, and enormous masses of nutritive mate-
rial accumulate in the huge large intestine. Ellenberger
and Hofmeister 2 have shown that food remains in the
alimentary canal for nearly four days. It remains in the
stomach and the small intestine only 24 hours, but about
three times as long in the large intestine. This is remark-
ably different from what happens in the case of birds, in
which there is no stagnation during the passage of food
through the digestive canal.
1 Quoted by Frddericq et Nuel, Elements de physiologic humaine, 4th
edition, 1899, P- 2 5-
2 Quoted by Fre"dericq et Nuel, op. cit.
MICROBES AS THE CAUSE OF SENILITY 75
The structure of birds is adapted for flight, the body
being as light as possible, many of the bones and the
cavities of the body containing air-sacs. The absence of a
bladder and of a true large intestine prevents the accumula-
tion of excreta, these being ejected almost as rapidly as
they are formed. The process of ejection, which takes
place often in birds, is not so inconvenient as in mammals.
The hind limbs are not used in flight, so that they offer
no obstacle to evacuation. Thus birds may discharge their
droppings while flying.
Such structure and habits make it not surprising that
the alimentary canal of many birds contains only a scanty
intestinal flora. Parrots, for instance, which are remark-
ably long-lived birds, harbour very few microbes in the
intestine. The small intestine contains almost none, the
rectum so few that the faecal matter appears to be formed
of mucus, the waste of the food, and only a very few
microbes. M. Michel Cohendy, who has examined the in-
testinal flora at the Pasteur Institute, was unable to isolate
more than five different species of microbes living in the
alimentary canal of parrots.
Even in birds of prey which feed upon putrid flesh, the
number of microbes in the intestine is remarkably limited.
I have investigated the case of ravens which I fed on flesh
which was putrid and swarming with microbes. The drop-
pings contained very few bacteria, and it was specially
remarkable that the intestines had not the slightest smell of
putrefaction. Although the opened body of a herbivorous
mammal, such as a rabbit, gives off a strong smell of putre-
faction, the body of a raven with the digestive tube exposed
has no unpleasant smell. This absence of putrefaction in
the intestine is probably the reason of the great longevity
of such birds as parrots, ravens, and their allies.
76 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
It might be said, however, that the long duration of life
in birds is due to the organisation of these animals, rather
than to the scantiness of their intestinal flora. To meet
this objection, it is necessary to turn to the case of cursorial
birds.
There are some birds incapable of flight, the wings of
which are badly developed, but which have strong limbs,
and can run with great rapidity. Ostriches, cassowaries,
rheas, and tinamous, are well known examples of cursorial
birds. They live on the surface of the ground, and their
habits resemble those of mammals. When they are
attacked by enemies, they escape by running so quickly
that some of them (ostriches and rheas) outstrip even a
horse. However, like mammals, they cannot discharge
their secretions when they are running quickly. Tinamous
(Rhynchotus rufescens), which I have observed in captivity,
however quickly they may be running, stop abruptly to
discharge their excretions. M. Debreuil, at my request,
made observations on this matter, and assured me that the
tinamous and rheas (Rhea americana) in his park always
stood still for this purpose. He has noticed that the drop-
pings, however abundant, were always deposited in heaps.
With regard to ostriches, M. Riviere, director of the experi-
mental Gardens at Hamma, Algeria, has been kind enough
to give me the following information. " The discharge of
excreta," he said in a letter in January, 1901, " is less
frequent than in other birds, but the comparatively small
size of the enclosures here makes it impossible for me to
assert that the animal could discharge its droppings if it
were running for a length of time ; a priori I should think
that this did not happen. Normally the bird stands still
for defaecation, the tuft of feathers on the tail is lifted up,
and truere is a violent contraction of the abdominal muscles
MICROBES AS THE CAUSE OF SENILITY 77
before the sphincters of the cloaca are suddenly opened to
discharge the excrement with violence."
I believe that the remarkable development of the large
intestine in these running birds has been acquired to obviate
the danger which is caused by the animal having to stop for
defalcation. Although the huge caeca of these birds have
a digestive function, particularly on plants rich in cellulose,
I cannot think that the caeca of cursorial birds have been
developed for digestion. As a matter of fact, some birds
which are not cursorial live on the same kind of food
(herbage, seeds, and insects) and have much smaller
FIG. 14. Intestinal microbes from the caeca of a Rhea.
caeca, the caeca indeed, in some, for instance, the pigeons,
being quite rudimentary.
It is not surprising that the accumulation of food mate-
rial in the large intestine of running birds is associated with
the presence of an extremely rich intestinal flora. Micro-
scopic examination of the excrement of such birds shows
this at once. Although the intestinal contents and excre-
ment of many other birds show the presence of very few
microbes, belonging to a small number of species, the same
materials taken from running birds show enormous quan-
tities of microbes, belonging to a large number of species.
In the caecum of the rhea (Fig. 14) there are bacterial
78 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
threads, spirilla, bacilli, vibrios, and many kinds of cocci.
In the tinamous, the intestinal flora is if possible even
richer. According to the statistical investigations of M.
Michel Cohendy, the quantity of intestinal microbes in
cursorial birds is not less than that found in mammals, even
in man.
If I am correct in the view that I have been explaining,
cursorial birds, on account of their rich intestinal flora,
ought to have a shorter duration of life than that of flying
birds. I will now turn to this side of the question. Amongst
cursorial forms, there are some of the largest living birds,
ostriches being actually the largest living birds, whilst an
extinct running bird, the Aepyornis of Madagascar, was
the largest known bird. According to the rule that large
animals live longer than small animals, ostriches should be
able to reach a great age. The facts, however, are against
this. M. Riviere, who rears ostriches in Algeria, and has
a great experience of them, writes to me as follows : " I
have no confidence in the stories about the longevity of the
ostrich which were told me in the Sahara ; they rest on no
facts. My personal observation is not very large, but it is
quite exact. Some of the ostriches which have been hatched
here have lived for 26 years. I do not estimate the duration
of life of this bird at more than 35 years, and only one case
of this age have I seen myself in 20 years. The bird was
a female, a good layer and sitter; she died of old age,
showing all the signs of decrepitude, the skin excoriated
and lumpy, the feathers degenerate and dry. The bird laid
eggs until nearly the end of her life, but at irregular inter-
vals, and the shells were granular instead of being smooth
and polished."
In a farm near Nice, where ostriches are reared, there was
recently an old male called " Kruger," which was supposed
MICROBES AS THE CAUSE OF SENILITY 79
to be 50 years old. 1 Countess Stackelberg has been good
enough to try to get information for me about this, and
informs me that although they have not exact knowledge
at the farm, they believe that it must be 50 years old.
M. Riviere thinks this statement very surprising, and has
nothing in his own long experience to confirm it.
The facts which I have been able to get together do not
attribute a long life to other running birds. Gurney men-
tions that a cassowary (Casuarius westermanni) lived 26
years in the Zoological Gardens of Rotterdam, and that
three Australian emus (Dromacus novae-hollandiae) had
lived in the same Gardens for 28, 22, and 20 years. M.
Oustalet (Ornis, 1899, vol. x, p. 62) mentions another
emu of the same species which died in London at the age of
over 23 years. The rhea (Rhea americana), another large
running bird, does not live so long. " Boecking thinks
that its duration of life should be set down at from 14 to 15
years. According to him, many of these birds die of old
age " (Brehm, Oiseaux, vol. ii, p. 517).
It is striking to compare the short life of cursorial birds,
which nevertheless thrive and reproduce in captivity, with
the remarkable longevity of so many other birds (parrots,
birds of prey) which, although they are much smaller,
have been kept alive for from 80 to 100 years. It would be
difficult to find a more striking argument in favour of the
view that richness of the intestinal flora shortens life. When
birds become adapted to terrestrial life and acquire a huge
large intestine in which microbes can abound, their dura-
tion of life is diminished.
Just as some birds, losing the aerial mode of life, have
come to resemble mammals, so also some mammals have
1 D aviculture (a fortnightly Russian journal), Oct. 1st, 1904, No. 19,
P- 3-
80 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
become flying animals, provided with wings and in some
respects resembling birds. Bats are the most familiar in-
stance. The large intestine, which is extremely useful to
running animals, not only ceases to be an advantage but is
harmful to flying creatures, insomuch as it increases the
weight of the body uselessly. Bats, accordingly, have no
caecum whilst the large intestine is changed in structure
and function. Instead of being a capacious tube, serving
as a reservoir for the refuse of the food, the large intestine
of bats has the same diameter as the small intestine. Its
structure is nearly identical. It is provided with glands,
and as I have already mentioned in the last chapter, it
digests the food in the same way as the small intestine.
In fact, the large intestine has become simply a part of the
small intestine, the total length of the gut being reduced.
Bats, therefore, can no longer retain their secretions but
have to empty the intestine almost as often as most birds.
I find that Indian fruit bats (Pteropus medius) discharge
their excreta very often. Microscopic examination shows
that there is an absence of microbes quite unusual in the
case of a mammal. The alimentary canal of bats is nearly
aseptic, containing only a few single bacteria. I have fed
these fruit bats with the same food (carrots) which I have
given to rabbits, guinea pigs, and mice; whilst the bats
accomplished the process of digestion in i| hours, and
deposited excreta containing fragments of carrot, the
rodents took very much longer for digestion and large
quantities of waste matter accumulated in the caeca. The
intestinal flora too, although the food in each case was the
same, showed remarkable differences in these animals. It
was almost absent in the bats, whilst in the rabbits, guinea-
pigs and mice it consisted of a mass of microbes of different
species. The excrement of the bats had no unpleasant odour,
and the digestive canal of these bird-like mammals was free
MICROBES AS THE CAUSE OF SENILITY 81
from putrefaction. Fruit bats fed upon fruit discharged
excreta with a pleasant odour of apples and bananas. We
have seen that birds which live a life similar to that of
mammals acquire a rich intestinal flora and do not live so
long as aerial birds. It would be extremely interesting to
ascertain the duration of life of bats, mammals which live
like birds and have a very scanty intestinal flora. I have
been unable to get any exact information as to the duration
of life of the true bats, that is to say, the insectivorous
bats, as all the requests that I have addressed to specialists
have proved fruitless. It appears, however, that it is a
popular belief that bats live long. There is a Flemish
phrase : " as long-lived as a bat," and a similar phrase is
common in Little Russia.
As for the fruit-eating bats, I have been able to ascertain
that even in captivity, where the conditions are unfavourable
to them, the duration of life is relatively long. I have had
in my own possession a fruit bat (Pteropus medius) which
was bought in Marseilles 14 years ago. It showed no signs
of old age, and the teeth were in perfect condition. It died
of some acute disease accidentally contracted. I know of
another bat of the same species which lived in captivity for
more than 15 years, and I have been informed that 1 in the
London Zoological Gardens, a fruit bat has lived for 17
years. If these bats were adult when caught, it would be
necessary to add something to the known figures.
Although I do not know the exact duration of the life of
bats, it is clearly relatively long for mammals no bigger
than guinea-pigs. The difference is remarkable if we com-
pare it with the life of sheep, dogs and rabbits, mammals
very much larger in size, but possessed of a rich intestinal
flora.
The series of facts that I have been discussing strengthens
3 Country Life, 1905.
G
82 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
my conviction that the intestinal flora is an extremely im-
portant factor in the causation of senility. It must not be
supposed, however, that all the known facts can be ex-
plained equally easily on this hypothesis. The harm done
by microbes cannot always be measured by their abundance
in the alimentary canal. In the first place, it must be
remembered that some microbes are useful ; moreover,
microbes, even although their products are very dangerous,
may exist in quantities in an organism, and yet do no harm
if the organism has the power of resisting bacterial poisons.
Thus, for instance, the bacillus of tetanus, which thrives in
the alimentary canal, and which can endanger life if the
wall of the gut is wounded, does not harm a crocodile or a
tortoise, as these animals are extremely resistant to the
poison of tetanus. Dr. Favorsky, by experiments at the
Pasteur Institute, has shown that the poison of botulism
can be absorbed with impunity by some birds, and by tor-
toises, although death follows if a very small quantity of it
be introduced into the alimentary canal of a mammal.
The bodies of man and of higher animals are possessed
of a complex mechanism which resists the harmful action of
bacteria and their poisons. The various parts of this
mechanism may act differently, with the result that there is
great variation in the power of resistance. Thus, however
abundant microbes may be in the intestine, they may bring
little harm to an organism that has a high power of destruc-
tion or neutralisation of the toxins, or when these harmful
products are unable to pass through the intestinal wall. It
is in this way that I explain some exceptions to the general
rule, which are exceptions only in appearance. Such a case
is that of the nocturnal birds of prey. Although the diurnal
birds of prey (eagles, vultures, etc.) have very short caeca,
in which the food is never found, owls have very large
MICROBES AS THE CAUSE OF SENILITY 83
caeca, which may be as long as 10 cm. (Eagle-Owl, Bubo
maximus). These long caeca, however, contain debris of
the food only in the enlarged terminal portion, and the
food masses contain a very small number of microbes.
Notwithstanding a great difference in the length of the caeca
between the owls and the eagles, these two groups of birds
do not differ greatly in longevity. But the difference in the
caeca does not imply a corresponding difference in the intes-
tinal flora which appears to be very scanty in both cases.
It is possible that the elephant is a more real exception to
the rule. Here is a case of a mammal with an enormous
large intestine and a capacious caecum, and which none the
less is capable of surviving for a century. I have had no
opportunity of investigating the elephant from this point
of view, and have no explanation to suggest.
Monkeys and man differ from most mammals in so far as
they possess a long duration of life, although their large
intestines are very capacious. I have been unable to get
exact information as to the longevity of monkeys, but I
understand that these animals live longer than domesticated
mammals, such as the ox, sheep, dog, and cat. Anthro-
poid apes are supposed to be able to reach the age of 50
years. The only other mammal with a longevity similar
to that of the elephant is man.
G 2
DURATION OF HUMAN LIFE
Longevity of man Theory of Ebstein on the normal duration
of human life Instances of human longevity Circumstances
which may explain the long duration of human life
MAN has inherited from his mammalian ancestors his
organisation and qualities. His life is notably shorter
than that of many reptiles, but longer than that of many
birds and most other mammals. None the less he has in-
herited a capacious large intestine in which a most abun-
dant intestinal flora flourishes.
Gestation and the period of growth are long in the human
race, and from the point of view of theoretical considera-
tions, human longevity should be longer than it generally
is. Haller, a distinguished Swiss physiologist of the i8th
century, thought that man ought to live to 200 years ;
Buffon was of the opinion that when a man did not die
from some accident or disease he would reach 90 or 100
years.
According to Flourens, man takes 20 years to grow and
ought to live 5 times 20, that is to say, 100 years.
The actual longevity is much below these figures, which
arc based on theory. I have shown, moreover, that even
if the rule based on the theory of growth can be accepted
as generally true, it cannot be applied in every case, as the
factors controlling duration of life are very variable.
DURATION OF HUMAN LIFE 85
Statistics show that the highest human mortality occurs
in the earliest years of life. In the first year after birth
alone, one quarter of the children die. After this period
of maximum mortality, the death-rate slowly falls until
the age of puberty, and then rises again slowly and con-
tinuously. It reaches a second maximum between the ages
of 60 and 75, and then slowly falls again to the extreme
limit of longevity.
Bodio, 1 an Italian man of science, holds the view that
the great mortality of infants is a natural adaptation to
prevent too great an increase of the human race. This
view, however, cannot be supported, and rational hygiene
readily brings about a great diminution in the mortality of
children. The cause of mortality is in most cases maladies
of the intestinal canal, produced by erroneous diet, and
with the advance of civilisation, infant mortality has been
very greatly reduced.
I find it impossible to accept the view that the high
mortality between the ages of 70 and 75 indicates a natural
limit of human life. As a result of investigations into
mortality in most of the European countries, Lexis came
to the conclusion that the normal duration of human life
was not more than 75 years. Dr. Ebstein c accepts this
statistical result and announces that " we now know the
normal limit set by nature to the life of mankind. This
limit is at the age of maximum mortality. If man dies be-
fore then, his death iz premature. Everyone does not
reach the normal limit; life ends generally before it, and
only in rare cases after it."
The fact that many men of from 70 to 75 years old a*re
well preserved, both physically and intellectually, makes
1 Quoted by Ebstein, Die Kunst d. mensch. Leben zu verlcingern, 1891.
2 Op. tit., p. 12.
86 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
it impossible to regard that age as the natural limit of
human life. Philosophers such as Plato, poets such as
Goethe and Victor Hugo, artists such as Michael Angelo,
Titian and Franz Hals, produced some of their most
important works when they had passed what Lexis* and
Ebstein regard as the limit of life. Moreover, deaths of
people at that age are rarely due to senile debility. In
Paris, for instance, in 1902, of cases of deaths between the
ages of 70 and 74, only 8*5 per cent, were due to old age. 1
Infectious diseases, such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, dis-
eases of the heart and the kidneys, and cerebral
haemorrhage, caused most of the deaths of these old people.
Such cases of death, however, can often be avoided and
must be regarded as accidental rather than natural.
Confirmation of the view that the natural limit is not at
70 to 75 years is to be found in the fact that so many men
reach a greater age. Centenarians are really not rare. In
France, for instance, nearly one hundred and fifty people
die every year, after having reached the age of looor more.
In 1836, in a population of thirty-three millions and a half
(33,540,910), there were 146 centenarians, that is to say, one
in about 220,000 inhabitants. In some other countries,
particularly in Eastern Europe, the number of centenarians
is still greater. In Greece, for instance, there is a centen-
arian for each set of 25,641 living persons, that is to say,
nine times as many as in France. 2
What age can be reached by the human species ? For-
merly it was supposed that individuals might live for
several centuries ; to say nothing of Methuselah, whose age
of 969 years, mentioned in the Bible, is the result of a
mistake in calculation, I may mention Nestor, who, accord-
1 Annuaire statistique de la -ville de Paris, 23rd year, 1904, p. 164-171.
2 Ornstein, Virchow's Archiv., 1891, vol. cxxv, p. 408.
DURATION OF HUMAN LIFE 87
ing to Homer, lived for three human ages, that is to say,
300 years, or Dando, the Illyrian, and the King of the
Lacmons, who were supposed to have reached ages of five
or six centuries. These ancient records are, of course, quite
incorrect. Much more confidence can be placed in some
facts relating to more modern times, according to which
the extreme old age reached by man was 185 years.
Kentigern, the founder of the Cathedral of Glasgow,
known by the name of St. Mungo, died at the age of 185,
on Jan. 5th, 6OO. 1 Another astonishing case of longevity
is related from Hungary, where an agriculturist, Pierre
Zortay, born in 1539, died in 1724. The Hungarian
records of the i8th century contain other cases of death at
ages between 147 and 172 years.
The case of Drakenberg is still more authentic ; he was
born in Norway in 1626 and died in 1772, at the age of
146. He was known as the Old Man of the North. He
had been captured by African pirates and was held by
them for fifteen years, and was engaged as a sailor for
ninety-one years. His romantic history attracted contem-
porary attention, and the journals of the time (Gazette de
France, 1764, Gazette d'Utrecht, 1767, etc.) 2 contain in-
formation regarding him. The well-known instance of
Thomas Parr appears to rest on good authority. Parr was
a poor Shropshire peasant, who did hard work until he was
130 years old, and who died in London at the age of 152
years and 9 months. The celebrated Harvey examined
the body after death and was unable to discover organic
disease ; even the cartilages of the ribs were not ossified and
were elastic as in a young man. The brain, however, ^-as
hard and resisting to the touch, as its blood-vessels were
1 Ebstein, op. '/., p. 70.
2 Lejoncourt, Galerie des centenaires^ Paris, 1842, p. 96-98.
88 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
thickened and dry. Parr was buried in Westminster
Abbey. 1
It appears, then, that human beings may reach the age
of 150, but such cases are certainly extremely rare, and
are not known from the records of the last two centuries.
I cannot accept without a good deal of reserve the state-
ments as to two persons who died in the beginning of
the igth century at the ages of 142 and 145. On the other
hand, cases of duration of life from 100 to 120 years are
not very rare.
Extreme longevity is not limited to the white races.
According to Prichard, 2 negroes have lived respectively
to 115, 160, and 180 years. In the course of the igth
century there have been observed, in Senegal, eight negroes
ranging from 100 to 121 years old. M. Chemin 3 saw
himself in 1898 at Foundiougne an old man, whom the
natives stated to be 108 years of age; although he was
in good health, he had been blind for several years. The
same author, on the authority of the New York Herald
of June I3th, 1895, mentions the case of a coloured woman
in North Carolina, who was more than 140 years old, and
of a man 125 years old.
Women more frequently become centenarians than
men, although the difference is not very great. For in-
stance, in Greece, in 1885, in a population of nearly two
millions (1,947,760), there were 278 persons aged from
95 to 1 10 years, of whom 133 were male and 145 female.
1 Lejoncourt, op. tit., p. 101.
2 Researches into the Physical History of Mankind, 1836, vol. i, p. 1 157.
3 I owe to the kindness of M. Chemin a memoir in which he has
brought together the ancient and new records on the centenarians of all
countries up to the end of the nineteenth century. M. Chemin was
unable to find a publisher, but has given me his manuscript, extending to
182 pages.
DURATION OF HUMAN LIFE 89
In the seven years, from 1833 to 1839 inclusive, according
to Chemin, there were in Paris twenty-six men over the age
of 95, and forty-five women. Such facts, and many others,
support the general proposition that male mortality is
always greater than that of the other sex.
In most cases centenarians are notably healthy and of
strong constitution. There are instances, however, of
abnormal people having reached a great age. A woman,
called Nicoline Marc, died in 1760, at the age of no.
Since she was two years old, her left arm was crippled.
Her hand was bent under the arm like a hook. She was
a hunch-back, and so bent that she appeared to be no
more than four feet high. A Scotch woman, Elspeth
Wilson, died at the age of 115 years. She was quite a
dwarf, being only a little over two feet high. On the other
hand, although they usually have a very short life, giants
have been known to reach the age of 100.
Haller, in the eighteenth century, remarked that centen-
arians often occurred in the same family, as if longevity
were a hereditary quality. It is certainly the case that the
descendants of centenarians frequently reach extreme age.
Thomas Parr, for instance, left a son who died in 1761,
at the age of 127 years, having retained his mental facul-
ties until death. In M. Chemin's list of centenarians,
there are eighteen cases of extreme old age having been
reached by their relations. As all innate characters can be
transmitted, the influence of heredity and longevity must
be admitted. At the same time, it is necessary to remem-
ber the important influence of the similarity of conditions
in the case of parents and children. Many cases of tuber-
culosis and leprosy, which used to be assigned to heredity,
are now known to be due to infection in the same condi-
tions of life, and some of the examples of the attaining
9 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
of a great age by more than one member of a family may
be explained by the influence of surrounding circum-
stances. Very frequently the husband and wife, although
not related by blood, both attain extremely advanced age.
I found 22 cases of this kind in M. Chemin's list; I will
give a few of them. A widow, Anne Barak, died at the
age of 123, in Moravia; her husband died at the age of
118. In 1896, there was alive in Constantinople, M.
Christaki, a retired army doctor of the age of no; his
wife was 95 years old. In 1886, M. et Mme. Gallot, aged
respectively 105 years and 4 months, and 105 years and
one month, died within two days of each other at Vaugirard,
54, Rue Cambronne. Lejoncourt mentions a South
American of 143 years old, whose wife had lived to the
age of 117.
It is worth enquiring if there be any relation between
longevity and locality. There are some countries in which
very many of the natives reach old age. It appears that
Eastern Europe (Balkan States, and Russia), although
its civilisation is not high, contains many more centen-
arians than Western Europe. I have already mentioned
that Dr. Ornstein had shown the existence of many ex-
tremely old people in Greece. M. Chemin states that
in Servia, Bulgaria and Roumania there w'ere more than
5,000 centenarians (5,545) living in 1896. " Although
these figures appear to be exaggerated," wrote M. Chemin,
"it is undoubtedly the case that the pure and keen air of
the Balkans, and the pastoral or agricultural life of the
natives, predisposes to old age." The same author men-
tions several localities in France, notable for the numbers
of very old people. In 1898 in the commune of Sournia
(Pyrenees-Orientales) the total population was 600,
amongst which there was one woman of 95 years, a man
of 94, a woman of 89, two men of 85, two of 84, and two of
DURATION OF HUMAN LIFE 91
83, three women of 82, and two men of 80. At St. Blimont
in the Department of the Somme, amongst the 400 inhabi-
tants alive in 1897, there were six men between the ages of
85 and 93 years and one woman in her loist year.
It cannot be accepted that it is the keen air which
lengthens the life, because Switzerland, a mountainous
country, is notable for the rarity of centenarians. It is
more likely that some circumstance in the mode of living
influences longevity.
It has been noticed that most centenarians have been
people who were poor, or in humble circumstances, and
whose life has been extremely simple. There are instances
of rich centenarians, such as Sir Moses Montefiore who
died at the age of 101, but such are extremely rare. It may
well be said that great riches do not bring a very long life.
Poverty generally brings with it sobriety, especially in
old age, and it has been often said that most centenarians
have lived an extremely sober life. They have not all
followed the example of the celebrated Cornaro, who
brought himself to subsist on a daily diet of no more
than twelve ounces of solid food, and fourteen ounces of
wine, and who, although his constitution was weak, lived
for about a century. He has left extremely interesting
Memoirs, and retained his intelligence until his death on
the 26th April, 1566 (Lejoncourt, p. 146).
In M. Chemin's list I have counted twenty-six centen-
arians, distinguished by their frugal life. Most of them
did not drink wine, and many of them limited themselves
to bread, milk and vegetables.
Sobriety is certainly favourable to long life, but it is'
not necessary, because quite a number of centenarians have
drunk freely. Several of those who are catalogued by
Chemin, drank wine and spirits even to excess. Catherine
Reymond, for instance, who died in 1758 at the age of 107
92 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
years, drank much wine, and Politiman, a surgeon who
lived from 1685 to 1825, was in the habit, from his twenty-
fifth year onwards, of getting drunk every night, after
having attended to his practice all day. Gascogne, a butcher
of Trie (Hautes-Pyrenees), died in 1767 at the age of 120,
and had been accustomed to get drunk twice a week. A
most curious example is that of the Irish land-owner
Brawn, who lived to the age of 120, and who had an in-
scription put upon his tombstone that he was always
drunk, and when in that condition was so terrible that
even death had been afraid of him. Some districts, even,
are distinguished at once for the longevity of their in-
habitants and for the large local consumption of alcohol.
In 1897, tne village of Chailly in the Cote-d'Or had no
less than twenty octogenarians amongst 523 inhabitants.
This village is one of the localities in France where most
alcohol is consumed, and the old people are very far from
being distinguished from their younger fellows by any
special sobriety.
In some cases centenarians have been much addicted to
the drinking of coffee. The reader will recall Voltaire's
reply when his doctor described the grave harm that
comes from abuse of coffee which acts as a real poison.
" Well," said Voltaire, " I have been poisoning myself for
nearly 80 years." There are centenarians who have lived
longer than Voltaire, and have drunk still more coffee.
Elisabeth Durieux, a native of Savoy, reached the age of
114. Her principal food was coffee, of which she took daily
as many as forty small cups. She w^as jovial and a boon
table companion, and used black coffee in quantities that
would have surprised an Arab. Her coffee-pot was always
on the fire, like the tea-pot in an English cottage (Lejon-
court, p. 84; Chemin, p. 147).
It has been noticed that many centenarians do not smoke,
DURATION OF HUMAN LIFE 93
but this like all other traits is not universal. M. Ross,
who gained a prize for longevity in 1896 at the age of 102,
was an inveterate smoker. In 1897, a widow named
Lazennec, died at La Carriere, in Kerinou, Finistere, at
the age of 104. She lived in a hovel on charity, and she
had smoked a pipe ever since she was quite young.
It is plain that any factor to which long duration of life
has been attributed disappears when many cases are
examined. Naturally a sound constitution and a simple
and sober life are favourable to longevity, but apart from
these, there is something unknown which tends to long
life. The celebrated physiologist of Bonn, Pfliiger, 1 came
to the conclusion that the chief condition of longevity is
something " intrinsic in the constitution," something which
cannot be defined exactly, and which must be set down to
inheritance.
In the present state of knowledge, we cannot denote the
chief cause of human longevity, but the proper course
will be to seek it out as we would seek out that of animal
longevity. As human longevity is often local in its charac-
ter, and is exhibited by married people who have nothing in
common except their mode of life, we may enquire into the
intestinal flora and the mechanism by which the organism
resists its harmful effect as factors which influence the
duration of life. It is reasonable to suppose that in persons
living in the same district or under the same roof, the in-
testinal flora may be similar. The problem can be settled
only by a series of laborious researches which have yet to
be made. At present I can do no more than bring together
a large number of facts regarding the duration of life in
man and in animals, with the hope of suggesting the lines
for future investigation.
1 Ueber die Kunst d. Verlangerung d. mensch. Lebens, Bonn, 1890, p. 23.
PART III
INVESTIGATIONS ON NATURAL DEATH
I
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS
Theory of the immortality of unicellular organisms Exam-
ples of very old trees Examples of short-lived plants Pro-
longation of the life of some plants Theory of the natural
death of plants by exhaustion Death of plants from auto-
intoxication
IT must surprise my readers to find how little science really
knows about death. Although death has a preponderating
place in religions, systems of philosophy, literature and
folk-lore, scientific works pay little attention to it. This
unfortunate fact explains, although it may not justify, the
bitter attack made on science on the grounds that it is
occupied with minutiae and neglects the great problems of
human life, such as death. When Tolstoi was absorbed by
the problem and searched for some solution in the writings
of scientific men, he found that the explanations were trivial
or inexact. In consequence he was extremely indignant
with the men who devoted themselves to the investigation
of what seemed to him useless problems (such as the insect
world, or the structure of cells and tissues) and who were
yet unable to say what the destiny of man or death might be.
I am far from claiming to solve these problems ; I can do
little more than describe the actual state of the question of
natural death. I hope in this way at least to prepare for
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS 95
scientific investigation, and to call attention to it as the most
important problem of humanity.
By the use of the phrase " natural death " I mean to
denote a phenomenon that is intrinsic in the nature of an
organism and that is not the mere result of an external acci-
dent. Popular phraseology includes under natural death
all cases due to diseases. But as such deaths can be avoided
and are not due to qualities inherent in the organism, it is
erroneous to include them in the category " natural death."
In nature, death comes so frequently by accident that
there is justification for asking if natural death really oc-
curs. It used to be thought that death was the inevitable
end of life and that the living principle contained within
itself the germ of death. Accordingly, it was a surprising
discovery that many low organisms die only by accident,
and that if such accident be avoided, death does not fall on
them. Unicellular organsims (such as infusoria, many
other protozoa and low plants) multiply by simple division,
the organism thus giving rise to two new organisms ; the
parent so to speak loses itself in its offspring without under-
going death. To criticisms of this mode of presentment
of the facts, Weismann, who has attracted most attention
to the view, replied as follows : "In cultures of Infusoria,
these little animals continually multiply by division and no
dead bodies are found* The individual life is short, but it
ends not in death but in transformation to two new indivi-
duals."
Max Verworn, 1 a physiologist of repute, objected that
Weismann had overlooked the occurrence within the organ-
ism of a process of partial destruction, and that under cer-
tain conditions a complete organ of the infusorian body (the
nucleus) dies and is absorbed. Such death of a part, how-
ever, is not followed by death of the whole, and as the
1 Physiologic g/ntrale, 1900, p. 381.
96 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
continuous destruction of some of the cells in our own
bodies is not regarded as our death, the criticism of the
German physiologist cannot be accepted.
It is not only the extremely short-lived microscopic organ-
isms that escape death. Some of the higher plants, which
may attain to gigantic size, encounter death only by acci-
dents. There is nothing to be found in the nature of their
organisation which would seem to indicate that death is the
inevitable or even probable result of their constitutions.
The longevity of some trees has long been notorious, as
these appear to live for many centuries and to die only
when they are overwhelmed by the ravages of a storm or
killed by human agency.
When the Canary Islands were discovered, in the begin-
ning of the fifteenth century, the early explorers were struck
with the gigantic size of a dragon tree which was venerated
by the natives as their tutelary deity. The tree stood in
a Garden at Orotava in Teneriffe, and even in these early
days, its huge trunk contained a gigantic hollow. The tree
did not reward the worship of the natives, who were anni-
hilated by the Spaniards, and it survived them for nearly
four centuries. At the end of the eighteenth century it was
seen by Humboldt, 1 who found that the trunk was forty-
five feet in circumference, and who attributed to it a great
age because dragon trees grow extremely slowly. Early in
the nineteenth century (1819) a furious tempest swept over
Orotava and with a gigantic crash nearly a third of the
crown of leaves and branches fell on the ground. Notwith-
standing this shock, the monster survived for fifty years.
Berthelot, 2 who visited it in 1839, described it as follows :
" A dragon tree stood in front of my dwelling, grotesque in
1 Tableaux de la nature (French translation), 1808, vol. ii, p. 109.
* Webb and Berthelot, Histoire naturelle des ties Canaries, 1839, vol. i,
part 2, pp. 97-98.
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS 97
form, gigantic in size, which a storm had smitten without
overwhelming. Ten men would have much ado to girdle
FIG. 15. The Dragon-tree of the villa Orotava.
fr-
its vast trunk, fifty feet in circumference at the ground.
The huge column had a deep cave within it, hollowed by
the ages; a rustic porch gave access to the interior, and the
H
98 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
lofty dome, although half had been destroyed by a storm,
still bore an enormous crown of branches."
The famous dragon-tree got more and more damaged,
and was finally overthrown by a storm in 1868. A few
years after the catastrophe (in 1871) I myself saw the
remains of the colossus, lying on the ground as a huge
grey mass like some antediluvian monster. No accurate
estimate of its age can be formed, but it must have lived
several thousand years.
Trees have been known which were still older than the
dragon-tree of Teneriffe. One of the best known is the
baobab of Cape Verd, described by Adanson. " This re-
markable tree was thirty feet in diameter when the famous
French naturalist measured and described it. Three centu-
ries earlier, some English sailors had cut an inscription on
it, and Adanson laid this bare by removing three hundred
layers of wood. On his observations Adanson based an
estimate of 5,150 years as the age of the tree. 1 The old
cypresses of Mexico are thought to be still older. A. de
Candolle 2 concluded that the cypress of Montezuma was
2,000 years old when he saw it, and that the cypress at
Oazaca was much older than the tree described by Adan-
son. In California, trees of the species Sequoia gigantea
are three thousand years old, and Sargent, an American
botanist, attributes to some of them an age of at least five
thousand years.
The question of the nature of individuality in the vege-
table world has been raised in connection with the longevity
of trees. It has been asked if a tree is to be regarded as a
single individual or as a colony of many plants like a
branching polyp. It is a difficult question, but only of
1 Bibliotheque universelle de Geneve, 1839, vol. xlvi, p. 387.
2 Ibid., p. 392.
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS 99
secondary importance from the point of view of this dis-
cussion. A. de Candolle, 1 having paid special attention to
the subject, came to the conclusion that trees do not die of
old age, that, in the real sense of the phrase, there is no
natural end of their existence. Many botanists agree with
him. Naegeli 2 holds that a tree several thousand years old
dies only from external accidents.
It is plain that amongst the lower plants and the higher
plants there are cases where natural death does not exist.
Theoretically, life would have an unlimited duration, sub-
ject to the continuous replacement of the substance of the
organism in the normal metabolism. It must not be
inferred, however, that there is no such occurrence as
natural death amongst plants. There are numerous cases
where death comes quite apart from the agency of external
forces. Even amongst closely related plants there are some
cases where natural death does not occur, and others where
it is normal. The lower fungi offer a good instance. Some
of these pass through a longer or shorter vegetative stage
and then the living mass breaks up into spores (Myxomy-
cetes). The whole bulk of matter is not transformed, but
the remnant consists only of cuticular secretions, not living
cells. In other fungi, only some of the cells transform to
spores, the others dying naturally.
One stage of the life history of some lower plants is of
short duration. The prothalli of some cryptogams (Mar-
siliace<B) live only a few hours, just long enough for the
appearance of the sexual organs. When these are ripe
the body of the prothallus and all its constituent cells fall
a prey to natural death. In such cases there is a " corpse,"
1 Bibliotheque universelle de Geneve, vol. xlvii, p. 49.
2 Entstehung u. Begriff d. naturhistorischen Art, 2nd edit., Munich,
1865, p. 37.
II 2
ioo THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
composed of dead cells and protoplasm. Even amongst the
higher plants there are instances of an extremely short dura-
tion of life. Amaryllis lutea passes through all the stages
of its life-history in ten days, the minimum time necessary
for the sprouting of the leaves and flowers and the produc-
tion of the seeds, after which it dies naturally. 1 It is inter-
esting to find that in the same family there are other plants
notable for long duration of life. The Agave requires a
century to produce its flowers before death comes naturally.
Everyone is familiar with the so-called " annual " plants
which live only a few months, from the time when they
sprout, until, after the production of seed, death comes to
them naturally. The life of annuals, however, can be pre-
served for two or for several years. Rye is normally an
annual, but some varieties are able to live for two years and
produce two crops. The Cossacks of the Don have estab-
lished this fact, and have cultivated a biennial variety of
rye for many years. 2 Beetroot 3 is normally biennial, but
has been changed to a plant which lives for from three to
five years. Such instances are by no means unique.
Natural death can be postponed if the plant be prevented
from seeding. Professor Hugo de Vries has prolonged the
life of the Oenotheras he cultivates, by cutting the flowers
before fertilisation. Under ordinary conditions the stem
dies after producing from forty to fifty flowers, but, if cut-
ting be practised, new flowers are produced until the winter
cold intervenes. By cutting the stem sufficiently early,
the plants are induced to develop new buds at the base, and
these buds survive winter, and resume growth in the fol-
1 Griesebach, Die Vegetation der Erde.
2 Batalin, A eta Horti Petropolitani, vol. xi, no. 6, 1890, p. 289.
3 I am indebted to Prof. Hugo de Vries for this and other instances of
the prolongation of life in plants.
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS 101
lowing spring." (Extract from a letter of Prof. H. de
Vries.)
The grass of lawns is usually mowed before it begins to
flower, so as to prevent the ripening of the seeds and the
death of the plant. When this is done, the grass remains
continually green, and its life lasts for several years.
The connection between the seeding of plants and their
natural death has been recognised for long, and is usually
explained as being due to the exhaustion of the plant.
As I am not a botanist, and was anxious to know the
views of botanists on natural death, I wrote to Prof, de
Vries, as a universally accepted authority. The distin-
guished botanist replied to me as follows. " Your question
is extremely difficult. I do not think that much is known
as to the exact cause of the death of annual plants, but it is
customary to attribute it to exhaustion." All the botanists
who have expressed opinions on this matter appear to
hold a similar view. Hildebrand, 1 the author of a memoir on
the duration of life in plants, stated this view again and
again. According to him " the life of annuals is usually
short because they are exhausted by their extensive produc-
tion of seeds (p. 116)." "Even amongst plants which pro-
duce seeds for several years, there are some which are pre-
maturely exhausted by fructification and which die spon-
taneously " (p. 67). In the prothallus of many of the
higher cryptogams, the formation of a single embryo is
followed by natural death ; as Goebel 2 points out, the
embryo completely absorbs the prothallus.
As plants generally obtain their food with ease, it is
natural to ask what is the cause of the exhaustion after*
seeding. When a plant which cannot resist cold dies after
it has produced its seeds in the end of the summer, the event
1 Engler's Botanische Jahrbiicher, Leipzig, 1882, vol. ii, p. 51.
2 Organog raphie der Pflanzen, Idna, 1898-1901.
102 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
is natural enough. But how can \ve explain the death of an
annual plant which is growing in a rich soil, and which seeds
in the beginning of the summer, as being due to exhaustion
long before the winter cold. It frequently happens that
after harvest new shoots spring up from grains which have
fallen. The soil which can support this new vegetation
cannot have been exhausted by the cereal in question ; and
there has been enough warmth for the new crop. It cannot
be the external conditions which have caused the death of
the parent plant. The explanation of this apparent contra-
diction has been sought in the constitution of the plant
itself. Hildebrand remarks that " certain species have a
constitution which tends to early fructification. As soon as
the seeds have been set, the strength of the plant is ex-
hausted in the swelling of the grains, so that the plant
dies." " Other species, on the contrary, are so constituted
that they vegetate for a long time, before fruiting, after
which, however, they also die. A third set of plants have
such a constitution that " they do not die after seeding,
that they can seed often and live for many years " (p. 113).
Being unable to indicate exactly the intrinsic mechanism
of these different "constitutions," several botanists ex-
plain them by a kind of teleological predestination.
According to Hildebrand "the nutritive processes of a
plant have no other purpose than to make it capable of
reproduction ; this final end, however, can be reached in
different modes and after different periods of time" (p.
132). Goebel sets down similar views. "In heterosporous
plants the whole course of the development of prothalli
is predetermined. The prothalli, so far as we actually
know, to use the phrase of theologians, are predestined;
their fate is determined once for all " (p. 403). M. Massart l
expresses the same kind of view, when he says that " some-
1 Bulletin dtt jardin botanique de Bruxelles, vol. i, no. 6, 1905.
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS 103
times cells die because their work is finished, and they have
no longer any reason for existing."
Such an interpretation of the facts is quite opposed to
determinism, and makes the problem of natural death in
the plant world more difficult but more interesting.
The modern scientific conception of the universe excludes
the idea of predestination. The relations between fructifi-
cation and natural death must be regulated by the law of
selection, according to which no organism survives if its
reproduction is impossible. It occasionally happens that
children are born without organs which are indispensable
to life. Such monsters of different kinds being non-viable,
cannot be said to be predestined to death, as they die
because of defects in their structure. Others are born with
all that is necessary for life, and survive for that reason,
not because they are predestined to life. So also species
of plants which develop incompletely and which die before
they have produced spores or seeds, cannot survive ; whilst
those which die after having given birth to the next genera-
tion survive in their descendants. However quickly death
follow the production of seed, the species will survive
equally well. The cause of the natural death of plants
must be sought, therefore, not in predestination, but in
the mechanism of the organic processes.
Nothing seems more probable than that a plant should
die when all its organic forces have been exhausted. It
would be interesting, however, to ascertain the mechanism
of that exhaustion, and this especially because it is often
very difficult to imagine a cause for it. Many plants exist
which produce several generations each season, in the same
soil, without exhausting it. In perennial plants, some parts,
such as the flowers, die periodically, although the plant
itself is not exhausted. Everyone has seen that in gera-
io 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
niums some of the flowers wither whilst others are bloom-
ing, the process going on throughout the season. We can
scarcely attribute such a natural death of the flowers to any
exhaustion of the plant which continues to produce new
flowers.
The fairly frequent prolongation of the life of plants is
also out of harmony with the theory of natural death as the
result of exhaustion. It sometimes happens that male
plants produce female flowers abnormally ; cases of this
kind have been observed in willows, stinging-nettles, hops,
and especially in maize. 1 Here we have to deal with a
kind of monstrosity, differing, however, from the non-
viable monsters of the human race, in the respect that the
production of female flowers on the male branches results
in the prolongation of their lives. Generally the male
branches die a natural death as soon as the pollen has been
shed, and therefore some time before the death of the
female flowers. If, however, a male branch bears a female
flower which becomes fertilised, then the life of the branch
is prolonged until the seeds ripen. If the natural death of
the male flowers is the result of exhaustion due to the
development of the pollen, how can we reconcile this with
the prolongation of life in a case where the male branch
has also female flowers to nourish and seeds to mature ?
It is quite clear that natural death, in such cases, is the
result of a mechanism more complex than simple ex-
haustion.
Prof, de Vries has already noted that the duration of life
in plants depends on their vital processes. That view im-
plies that there are some qualities inherent in its organisa-
tion which can prolong or shorten the life of a plant, and it
1 Hugo de Vries, Jahrbiicher fiir wissensch. Botanik, 1890, vol. xxii,
p. 52.
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS 105
is here that we ought to find the key to the problem of
natural death in the vegetable world. However, to gain
exact knowledge of such factors, it would be necessary to
have information on many points in plant physiology
which unfortunately are very imperfectly known. In this
respect, the vital conditions of the simplest plants, such
as yeasts and bacteria, have been investigated much more
fully. It is true that such low organisms reproduce freely
either by division or by budding, so that they are amongst
the organisms in which natural death is not inevitable.
None the less, in their lives phenomena occasionally present
themselves which can be interpreted as cases of natural
death.
At a time when it was still unknown that all fermenta-
tion was due to the action of microscopic plants, it had
been observed that, in certain conditions, fermentation
ceased much more quickly than in other conditions. For
instance, when sugar is being transformed to lactic acid,
it is useful to add chalk, as otherwise the fermentation stops
before the greater part of the sugar has been acted upon.
When, in 1857, Pasteur made his great discovery of the
lactic acid microbe, he showed that that little organism,
although it could produce lactic acid, was interfered with
by an 'excess of the acid. To secure complete fermenta-
tion, it was necessary to neutralise the acid by the addition
of chalk.
When the action of lactic acid is continued too long, it
not only arrests the process of fermentation but definitely
kills the microbe. It is for that reason that it has been
found difficult to preserve the lactic acid ferment for a long-
time in a living condition. Amongst the ferments which
have been isolated from Egyptian ' leben ' by MM. Rist
and Khoury 1 there is one which is extremely delicate.
1 Annales de flnstitut Pasteur, 1902, p. 71.
io6 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
When it is inoculated deep in a nutritive medium, it dies
in a few days, death, without doubt, being due to the
lactic acid produced by the microbe from the sugar and
not neutralised. As this transformation of sugar into
lactic acid is a fundamental property of the microbe, de-
pending on its constitution, the arrest of the fermentation
and the death of the ferment in these definite 'Conditions
can be interpreted only as natural death due to auto-intoxi-
cation, that is to say to poisoning by a product of the
physiological activity of the microbe itself. As death
takes place at a time when the medium still contains
enough sugar for the nutrition of the microbe, it is certain
that it cannot be the result of exhaustion. This case of
the lactic acid ferment is not unique. The microbe which
produces butyric acid is also interfered with by the acid
it secretes. M. G. Bertrand, who has examined carefully
the microbe which produces fermentation in sorbose (sugar
extracted from fruit of the service-tree) (Sorbus domestica)
has informed me that this fermentation, too, ceases under
the influence of the secretions of the microbes, and that
the microbes undergo natural death at a time when the
medium is far from exhausted of the nutritive material.
The yeast which produces alcohol is also interfered with
by an excess of alcohol, and as soon as a certain limit
of alcoholic strength has been reached, fermentation stops.
When the yeast is grown in media rich in nitrogen and
poor in sugar, the plant takes the nitrogenous material
and produces salts of ammonia. These alkalies damage
the yeast and cause its death by auto-intoxication. 1
In the examples that I have given, natural death was
a result of the activity of the microbes, and was in cor-
relation with their organisation. Such death can be
1 Duclaux, Microbiologie, vol. iii, 1900, p. 460.
NATURAL DEATH AMONG PLANTS 107
avoided by changing the external conditions, and, if the
acids or alkalies produced by these bacteria are neutralised,
the bacteria survive. The facts are in harmony with those
that I described in the case of the higher plants. By pre-
venting the ripening of seed, the life of many annual
plants may be preserved and the plants changed to bi-
ennials or perennials. In such cases death, although the
result of the constitution of the plant, may be postponed.
We may ask then if the natural death of higher plants,
usually attributed to exhaustion, cannot be explained more
simply as the result of poisons produced in their meta-
bolism. Many plants produce poisons which are fatal to
animals and man. May they not also produce substances
fatal to themselves? There is nothing improbable in the
supposition that some of the poisons may develop when
the seeds are ripening. By preventing the latter process,
the ripening of the whole organism may also be prevented.
Such a theory would explain the many cases of natural
death which occur whilst the cell is far from having reached
exhaustion. The equally numerous cases of partial death,
such as that of flowers, whilst the same stem is still pro-
ducing other flowers (e.g. geraniums) would be explained
by a local action of the poisons not strong enough to kill
the whole plant.
I must insist that this theory, that natural death of the
higher plants, is the result of auto-intoxication, is a mere
hypothesis which future investigations may disprove. If,
however, it comes to be confirmed, it would explain the
coincidence of death and fructification more simply than
the hypothesis of predestination.
The higher plants may be subjects of auto-intoxica-
tion in the same fashion as bacteria and yeasts. If these
poisons were produced before the ripening of the seeds,
108 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the plants would remain sterile, leaving no descendants,
so that the race would become extinct. The production of
poisons at the time of fructification would not interfere
with the succession of generations, and the race would be
preserved. As the poisoning is not necessary, it is easy
to understand why many plants survive seeding and escape
natural death. The Dragon-tree, baobab, and the cedars,
which I spoke of earlier, would be examples of such escape.
Although the existence of auto-intoxication in the higher
plants is still only a hypothesis, the natural death of bac-
teria and yeasts by poisons which they themselves produce
is an ascertained fact.
In the plant world, therefore, there are examples of
natural death (bacteria and yeasts) due to auto-intoxica-
tion, and there are other cases where high or low plants
escape natural death.
II
NATURAL DEATH IN THE ANIMAL WORLD
Different origins of natural death in animals Examples of
natural death associated with violent acts Examples of
natural death in animals without digestive organs Natural
death in the two sexes Hypothesis as to the cause of natural
death in animals
THE cases of natural death amongst animals differ from
those found in the vegetable world by their greater variety
and complexity. As M. Massart has shown for plants,
so also natural death must have become established inde-
pendently in different groups of animals. In some cases,
the characters presented are strange and almost para-
doxical.
It is usual to contrast natural death with violent death
on account of the difference between the two. None the
less, natural death may occur in the animal kingdom, that
is to say death resulting directly from the constitution,
and yet in intimate association with violent acts. I will
give some examples.
Small, helmet-shaped organisms, transparent and grace-
ful, are common on the surface of the sea. These have
been described by zoologists under the name Pilidium.
The organisation is simple. The body wall is a delicate
pellicle, through which, on the lower surface, a mouth
leads into a capacious stomach. Continual movements of
no THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
waving cilia direct small particles of food through the
mouth to the digestive stomach. As there are no organs
of reproduction, it was assumed that these creatures were
not adults, but floating larvae of some marine animal,
and, after a good deal of trouble, it was found that the
Pilidia were the young stages of ribbon-shaped worms of
the group of Nemertines. At a definite stage in the life-
history, a foetus begins to develop round about the stomach
of the Pilfdium, and eventually completely encloses it and
detaches it by violent muscular contractions. The end of
the story is that the foetus abandons the body of the
Pilidium carrying off with it the stomach, an organ neces-
sary to the maintenance of life. The remnant of the Pili-
dium swims about in the sea-water, but soon dies as the
result of the mortal wound caused by the removal of the
digestive organs.
The act by which the Nemertine separates from its
mother is violent, and yet the death of the Pilidium
must be regarded as natural. It is the result of agencies
within the body and not, as in most cases of accidental
death, of violence from without.
The group of Nematode worms contains many common
intestinal parasites of man, such as Ascaris, Trichina,
Trichocephalus, Oxyuris, &c., but also others that live
free in soil or water or in such fluids as vinegar. They
are protected by a strong cuticle, and some of them are
viviparous, that is to say, instead of laying eggs they give
birth to young worms already well grown and capable of
independent activity. Amongst the human Nematode
parasites, the Trichinae give birth to swarms of small larvae
which easily escape from the body of the mother by the
female generative aperture. In the case of some free-living
Nematodes, however, the female aperture is too small to
NATURAL DEATH IN ANIMAL WORLD in
give passage to the rather stout larvae. More than forty
years ago, when I was investigating the life-history 1 of
one of these Nematodes (Diplogaster tridentatus) I was
struck by the fact that the larvae could leave the body of
the mother only by violence and after they had devoured
most of its substance. These larvae develop from eggs
produced within the maternal body. As the external re-
productive aperture of the female is minute, the larvae
cannot escape through it, but wander amongst the tissues
tearing and absorbing them. The mother soon dies, and
although her death is violent, it must be included in the
category of natural death.
From the ideological point of view it might be said
that Pilidium and Diplogaster cease to live because they
have fulfilled their function of giving rise to a Nemertine
or young Nematodes. Their natural death would thus
be predestined. There is no ground for such an interpre-
tation. On the other hand, it is certain that this death,
coming after the birth of the new generation, is in no way
against the preservation of the species in which the extra-
ordinary natural death by violence occurs. If the female
orifice of Diplogaster were slightly larger, the larvae would
emerge without difficulty and without causing the death of
the mother which none the less would have fulfilled
her purpose.
All the cases of natural death amongst animals are not
so brutal as those of the Pilidium and the Nemertine worms.
In many instances the death is peaceful. As very fre-
quently it is difficult to establish definitely that the death is
natural, I shall select clear cases.
Animals are occasionally found which are devoid of some
organ necessary for prolonged life. The absence of a
1 Archil', fiir Anatomic und Physiologic, 1864.
ii2 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
digestive tract in an animal that lives in an environment
rich in dissolved nutritive material (as for instance tape-
worms living in the intestinal tract) is not surprising.
But when creatures of the sea 6r of fresh water have no
digestive tract, their life can be maintained only at the
expense of nutritive material stored within them during
embryonic life. The death which conies eventually is truly
natural. The best cases, that is to say those which can
be studied most completely, of such natural death occur
amongst the Rotifera. These are minute creatures of fresh
or sea water, at one time confused with the Infusoria,
but possessed of a much more complex organisation. They
have a well-developed digestive tube, organs of excretion,
nervous system, and organs of sense. The animals are di-
oecious ; in each species both males and females exist.
Whilst the females have the complete structure of the
species, the males are much reduced, and are devoid of
a digestive canal. The cuticle is fairly stout, and they
are unable to absorb dissolved nutriment through it; as
they have no organs of digestion, their life must be
short.
To study in detail the life and death of these creatures, I
selected a species sent to me by M. Haffkine. So far as
I can judge, the species in question is a hitherto unknown
member of the genus Pleurotrocha, and I propose for it
the name Pleurotrocha haffkini. This rotifer is convenient
to study as it thrives in vessels containing fresh-water to
which some bread-crumb has been added (in the propor-
tion of a gram of bread to 500 grams of water).
The sexes of the little rotifer can be distinguished from
the earliest age, for eggs that are to become females are
much larger than those from which males develop. It
is easy to isolate the male eggs and to follow the life-history
NATURAL DEATH IN ANIMAL WORLD 113
up to the moment of natural death. The whole course of
life from the laying of the egg until death lasts only about
three days, and is probably the shortest duration of life
in the animal kingdom. Although some Ephemeridae live
only a few hours in the adult state, their total life-cycle
is much longer than that of the rotifers, as the larval stages
last for months or even for years.
The little males (Fig. 16) begin to swim soon after
hatching, the wheel-apparatus and the musculature being
vigorous. They seek out the females, as their reproduc-
tive organs are mature almost at the moment of hatching.
The transparent body, which is devoid of digestive ap-
paratus, swarms with mobile spermatozoa. As soon as
the male has seized a female, he discharges the contents
of his body. It might be supposed that such an evacuation
would cause a violent perturbation of the system leading
to the death of the organism. There is no question of this
however. The males are able to live for twenty-four hours
after having accomplished their function, and the period
represents a third of their total duration of life. More-
over, I have isolated males from females without any pro-
longation of their lives. In one experiment, I isolated
two males and placed a third in company with two females.
It was the third specimen that lived longest.
The natural death of the males is foreshadowed by a
weakening of the movements; although the muscles and
i
1 1 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
cilia remain mobile, the whole animal moves only spas-
modically; sometimes the muscles of the head contract,
sometimes those of the tail, but no locomotion occurs.
Occasionally there is a violent effort of ciliary motion as if
the attempt were being made to overcome the immobility
of the body. Such a condition lasts for several hours and
is followed by death. The spermatozoa inside the body
retain activity last of all.
Towards the crisis, bacteria, which abound in the medium
occupied by the rotifers, begin to attack the males. Some
cluster round the head, others round the tail, although
none of them can effect entrance to the body. The death
of the males cannot be attributed to microbial infection,
but comes from some intrinsic cause.
Is it inanition that is the cause of death ? I do not
think so, because up to the time of death the tissues appear
to be unmodified. In the case of the females I have some-
times seen phenomena of inanition. In old and exhausted
cultures the starved females become thin, flattened and
quite transparent, and the tissues lose their granular ap-
pearance. No such changes are visible in the dying males,
the tissues of which, on the contrary, retain a normal
aspect.
The most probable explanation is that death comes from
poisoning by the secretions of the tissues themselves. The
large size of the organs of excretion indicates that in the
course of metabolism waste matter is produced some of
which is got rid of. If, after a time, the secretions are
insufficiently eliminated, the tissues must be poisoned. As
death is preceded by a spasm of uncoordinated movement,
it appears as if the fatal intoxication of the males affected
the nervous system first. The vibrating cilia and the
muscles are attacked later.
There can be no doubt but that the death of these male
NATURAL DEATH IN ANIMAL WORLD 115
rotifers is natural in the fullest sense. The females, how-
ever, although they are provided with complete digestive
organs, do not escape a similar fate. Their life is longer
and more complex than that of the males, and so is subject
to many more chances. The females therefore may come
to die from starvation or from other external, accidental
causes. But, if they are kept in favourable conditions,
they may live for about fifteen days, towards the end of
which they die naturally, exhibiting the symptoms that I
have described in the case of the males (Fig. 17).
Rotifers are not the only animals which undergo natural
death in a fashion quite unlike the violent end of Pilidium
FIG. 17. Female Pleurotrocha haffkini, which has died a natural death.
and Diplogaster. There are other cases amongst inverte-
brates, but I shall limit myself to describing one that is
well ascertained.
More than fifty years ago, Dana, the American
naturalist, discovered a pelagic marine creature with char-
acters so curious that he gave to it the name Monstrilla.
It is a little crustacean akin to the Cyclops of lakes. But
although the latter is endowed with the organs necessary
to capture and digest food, Monstrilla has neither organs
of prehension nor a digestive canal. It is a highly muscu-
lar animal with organs of sense and reproduction and a
nervous system ; but it is devoid of apparatus for prolong-
n6 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the
ing life by nutrition.
Monstrilla therefore is a
creature doomed to
natural death.
The detailed observa-
tions of M. Malaquin 1
have supplied full infor-
mation regarding this
strange life-history. Mon-
strilla passes a portion of
.5 its life as a parasite on
jf Annelid worms. In that
rt
stage it accumulates the
necessary material for the
growth of the sexual pro-
ducts (ova and sperma-
tozoa) and for free life in
the sea whilst the young
are developing. It is not
only the males which
have no digestive appara-
tus. The females also
lack it, which is the more
surprising as they carry
about the eggs attached
to the body (as is done by
many other Crustacea,
such as crayfish and lob-
sters) until the young are
ready to hatch (Fig. 18).
M. Malaquin thinks that
Monstrillas die of starvation.
1 Archives de Zoologie exptrimentale, 1901, vol. ix, p. 81.
NATURAL DEATH IN ANIMAL WORLD 117
" As they are without a digestive tube or organs of
prehension or mastication," M. Malaquin says (p. 192),
" the Monstrillas, which have no means of nutrition, are
doomed to death from inanition after a short pelagic life.
This is a logical inference from their structure."
In support of his view, M. Malaquin states that before
death the tissues and organs show plain signs of degenera-
tion.
" The eyes first show traces of degeneration. The pig-
ment spreads and disappears little by little and then the
visual elements fade out."
" Finally, individuals, usually females, show complete
degeneration. A female taken in a fine-meshed net showed
no trace of organs in the head; the eyes, the brain and
the intestinal tract had disappeared almost completely.
The antennae were reduced to stumps consisting of the
lowest joint and a portion of the second. These were clear
indications of the senility that precedes death " (p. 194).
Such evidence not only supports the hypothesis that
the natural death of Monstrilla is due to inanition, but
is opposed to a similar interpretation being applied to the
case of male rotifers, in which death is not preceded by
wasting of the organs. The death of some insects, which
comes rapidly after the adult stage has been reached, cannot
readily be attributed to starvation. In the strange butter-
flies known as psychids (Solcnobid) some of the females
lay eggs without having been fertilised, 1 and their life in
the adult condition lasts only a day. On the other hand,
other females of the same butterfly are fertilised before
laying their eggs and in this case survive for more than
a week although they take no food. The rapid death of
the first-mentioned set cannot be attributed to inanition.
1 Observations of Dr. Speyer, quoted by Weismann.
n8 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
In some Ephemeridce, which supply good cases of
natural death, the end comes after a few hours of adult
life without any sign of degeneration of the organs. As
in others (Chloe), life lasts for several days without food
having been taken, it is clear that inanition is not the
cause of the swift arrival of death in the first set. It is
much more probable that the natural death is due to an
auto-intoxication which takes effect at different intervals
of time in different circumstances. 1
In the higher animals such as vertebrates the conditions
are less favourable than in the case of insects for the in-
vestigation of the causes of natural death. Vertebrates
have always well-developed organs of digestion and so
live a relatively longer time and encounter a greater number
of chances of accident, with the result that in most cases
death comes from external accidental causes. Vertebrates
usually perish from hunger or cold, or are devoured by
their enemies or killed by the attacks of parasites or dis-
eases. There remains only the human race amongst the
more highly developed animals, in which to study the
onset of natural death. And in the human race cases
which may be designated as natural are extremely rare.
1 See The Nature of Man.
Ill
NATURAL DEATH AMONGST HUMAN BEINGS
Natural death in the aged Analogy of natural death and
sleep Theories of sleep Ponogenes The instinct of sleep
The instinct of natural death Replies to critics Agree-
able sensation at the approach of death
THE death of old people, which has often been described as
natural death, is in most cases due to infectious diseases,
particularly pneumonia (which is extremely dangerous) or
to attacks of apoplexy. True natural death must be very
rare in the human race. Demange l has described it as
follows : " Arrived at extreme old age, and still preserv-
ing the last flickers of an expiring intelligence, the old man
feels weakness gaining on him from day to day. His
limbs refuse to obey his will, the skin becomes insensitive,
dry, and cold ; the extremities lose their warmth ; the face
is thin ; the eyes hollow and the sight weak ; speech dies
out on his lips which remain open ; life quits the old man
from the circumference towards the centre ; breathing grows
laboured, and at last the heart stops beating. The old
man passes away quietly, seeming to fall asleep for the
last time." Such is the course of what properly speaking
is natural death.
The natural death of human beings cannot be regarded
as due to exhaustion from reproduction or from inanition,
1 tude clinique sur la vieillesse, Paris, 1886, p. 145.
120 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
as in the case of Monstrilla. It is much more likely that it
is due to an auto-intoxication of the organism. The close
analogy between natural death and sleep supports this
view, as it is very probable that sleep is due to poisoning
by the products of organic activity.
It is more than fifty years since sleep was explained as the
result of auto-intoxication. Obersteiner, Binz, Preyer, and
Errera are among the competent men of science who have
taken this view. The first two attributed sleep to an
accumulation in the brain of the products of exhaustion
which are carried away by the blood during repose. The
attempt has been made even to discover the nature of these
narcotic substances. Some investigators think that an
acid, produced during the activity of the organs, is stored
up in quantities that cannot be tolerated. During sleep,
the organism gets rid of this excess of acid.
Preyer 1 tried to put the problem upon a more exact
basis by the theory that the activity of all the organs gives
rise to substances which he called ponogenes and which
he regarded as producing the sensation of fatigue.
According to him these substances accumulate during the
waking hours, and are destroyed by oxidation during
sleep. Preyer thinks that lactic acid is the most important
of the ponogenes, and lays stress on its narcotic effect. If
his theory were correct, there would be a remarkable
analogy between the auto-intoxication by lactic acid in the
cases of man and animals, and the case of bacteria which
produce the same acid and the fermenting activity of which
is arrested as the acid accumulates. Just as sleep may be
transformed to natural death, so also the arrest of lactic
fermentation may be followed by the death of the bacteria
which form the acid.
1 Revue scientifique, 1877, p. 1173.
NATURAL DEATH 121
So far, however, there has been no confirmation of
Preyer's theory. Errera 1 has brought forward against it
another theory according to which the cause of sleep is
not acid products, but certain alkaline substances described
by M. Armand Gautier under the name of leucomaines.
Gautier laid down that these substances act on the nervous
centres and produce fatigue and sleepiness. According to
Errera they might very well be the cause of sleep, as that
comes on at a time when there is the greatest accumulation
of these leucomaines in the body. He thinks that their
action in producing sleep is a direct intoxication of the
nerve centres. During sleep they are removed, and the
disturbance which was produced in the organism is arrested.
If it were possible to accept Errera's theory, a kind of
analogy could be established between sleep and natural
death on the one hand, and the arrest of development and
death of yeast grown in nitrogenous media on the other
hand, because in the latter case the poisoning is produced
by an alkaline salt of ammonia. It must be confessed,
however, that the actual state of our knowledge does not
allow of a definite view of the real mechanism of the sleep-
producing intoxication. Our ideas regarding leucomaines
in general are still incomplete, and, recently, one of them,
adrenaline, the product of the supra-renal capsules, has been
investigated. Adrenaline is an alkaloid 2 which is pro-
duced in the supra-renal bodies and is discharged into the
blood. It has the power of contracting arteries strongly,
and has been used to control blood-pressure. When it is
given in large quantities or in frequent doses, it acts as a
true poison, whilst, in small doses, it produces anaemia of
the organs and has a special influence on the nervous
1 Revue scientifique, 1887, 2nd part, p. 105.
8 Gabriel Bertrand, Annales de tlnstitut Pasteur, 1904. p. 672.
122 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
centres. Dr. Zeigan 1 has shown that a milligramme of
adrenaline, mixed \vith five grammes of normal salt solu-
tion injected into the brain of cats, produces a soporific
action. " About a minute after the injection, the animal
appears to be plunged into deep sleep which lasts from 30 to
50 minutes. During this time, the sensitiveness of the animal
has completely ceased throughout the body, and for some
time after that it is much decreased. When they awake
the animals seem to have been drunk with sleep for some
time." Sleep is generally associated with anaemia of the
brain, and as adrenaline can actually produce such anaemia,
it might be supposed that this narcotic substance is the
most important of the organic products which give rise
to sleep. Against this hypothesis, however, some weight
must be given to recent investigations on fatigue and its
causes.
Each stage in the advance of knowledge has had its
influence, on the study of the interesting and complex
problem of sleep. When it was thought that alkaloids
(ptomaines) were of great importance in infectious diseases,
it was attempted to explain sleep as due to the action of
similar bodies. Now, when we believe that in such diseases
the chief part is played by poisons of extremely complex
chemical composition, the attempt is made to explain
fatigue and sleep by similar bodies.
Weichardt 2 has recently made the best known investiga-
tions in this direction. This young man maintains with
ardour the view- that during the activity of organs there is
an accumulation of special materials which are neither
organic acids nor leucomaines, but which are much more
like the toxic products of pathogenic bacteria.
1 Therapeutische Monatshefte, 1904, p. 193.
2 Miinchener medicinische Wochenschrift, 1904, No. i ; Verhandlungen
der physiologischen Gesellschaft zu Berlin, Dec. 5th, 1904,
NATURAL DEATH 123
Weichardt made animals in his laboratory go through
fatiguing movements for hours and then killed them. The
extract from muscles of such animals had a powerful toxic
effect when it was injected into normal animals, producing
lassitude and sometimes death within 20 to 40 hours. As
all attempts to determine the exact chemical nature of this
fatigue-producing substance were baffled, it is impossible
to get an exact account of it. Amongst its properties there
is one of great interest. When it has passed into the cir-
culation of normal animals in quantities insufficient to
produce death, it excites the formation of an anti-toxin
in the same way as a poison of diphtheria stimulates the
production of a diphtheria anti-toxin.
When Weichardt injected into animals a mixture of the
poison which produces fatigue with small doses of the
serum antidote, no results followed. The neutralising effect
of the antidote was apparent even when it was introduced
by the mouth. Towards the end of his investigations.
Weichardt supposed that it would be possible to obtain a
material that would prevent fatigue.
Although it is still impossible to specify exactly the
nature of the substances which accumulate during the
activity of organs and which produce fatigue and sleep,
it is becoming more and more probable that such sub-
stances exist, and that sleep is really an auto-intoxication
of the organism. So far, such a theory has not been shaken
by any argument. Recently M. E. Claparede, 1 a psycho-
logist of Geneva, has argued against the current theory
of sleep. He thinks that it is contradicted by the fact that
new-born infants sleep a great deal, whilst very old people
sleep very little. This fact, however, can readily be ex-
1 Archives des sciences physiques et naturelles, Geneva, March, 1905,
vol. xvii ; Archives de physiologic, vol. iv, p. 245.
i2 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
plained by the greater sensibility of the nerve centres of
infants, as shown with regard to many harmful agencies.
The other objections of Claparede, such as the fact that
sleepiness is induced by exercise in the open air, or that
excess of sleep itself produces sleepiness, are not really
incompatible with the theory of auto-intoxication. They
are facts of secondary importance probably depending on
some complication which the present state of our know-
ledge makes it difficult to indicate exactly. The insomnia
of neurasthenia, which Claparede brings forward as another
objection, can readily be explained as due to hyperaesthesia
of the nervous tissues which lose part of their sensitive-
ness to poisons.
On the other hand, there are many well established facts
in agreement with the theory of auto-intoxication. Leav-
ing out of the question sleep induced by narcotics, I may
mention in this connection the so-called "sleeping sick-
ness." It has been proved that this disease is caused by
a microscopic parasite, the Trypanosoma gambiense of
Dutton, which develops in the blood and spreads to the
liquid of the membranes surrounding the central nervous
system. One of the most typical symptoms of the advanced
stages of this disease is continual drowsiness. " The
drowsiness increases progressively, and the habitual atti-
tude becomes characteristic ; the head is bent on the breast ;
the eyelids are closed; in earlier stages the invalid can be
aroused easily, but, after a time, incurable attacks of sleep
overcome the patient in all circumstances, but especially
after meals. These fits of sleepiness become longer and
deeper, until they reach a comatose condition from which
it is almost impossible to arouse the patient." 1 The total
1 Laveran and Mesnil, Trypanosomes et Trypanosomiases, Paris, 1904,
p. 328.
NATURAL DEATH 125
result of medical knowledge of this disease is that it is
impossible to doubt that the sleepiness is due to intoxica-
tion produced by the poison of the trypanosome.
Claparede has opposed what he calls an " instinctive"
theory to the toxic theory of sleep. According to this
theory, sleep is the manifestation of an instinct " the object
of which is to arrest activity ; we do not sleep because we
are intoxicated or exhausted, but to prevent ourselves from
falling into such a condition." However, in order to bring
this narcotic instinct into play, certain conditions are neces-
sary, one of which certainly would be the intoxication of
the nerve centres. M. Claparede supposes that sleep is an
active phenomenon, induced when waste matter begins to
accumulate in the organism. " To bring about sleep, the
nerve centres must be influenced by waste matter, and
this influence can readily be regarded as a kind of intoxica-
tion."
Hunger is an i.nstinctive sensation as much as sleepiness,
but it does not appear until our tissues are in a condition
of exhaustion, the exact nature of which cannot as yet be
indicated. There is no real contradiction between the toxic
and instinctive theories of sleep. The two theories repre-
sent different sides of a special condition of the organism.
The analogy between sleep and natural death is in favour
of the supposition that the latter, also, is due to an intoxica-
tion much more profound and serious than that which
results in sleep. Therefore, as natural death in human
beings has been studied only very superficially, it is impos-
sible to do more than frame theories regarding it.
It would be natural if, just as in sleep there is an instinc-
tive desire for rest, so also the natural death of man were
preceded by an instinctive wish for it. As I have already
discussed this subject in the " Nature of Man " (chap, xi)
126 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
I need not deal with it at length here. I should like, how-
ever, to add some information which I have recently
obtained.
The most striking fact in favour of the existence of the
instinct for natural death in man appears to me to have
been related by Tokarsky in regard to an old woman.
While Tokarsky was alive I asked one of his friends to
obtain for me further details of this very interesting case.
Unfortunately Tokarsky could add nothing to what he had
already published in his article. I think that I have dis-
covered the source of his information. In his famous book
on the Physiology of Taste 1 Brillat-Savarin relates as fol-
lows: "A great-aunt of mine died at the age of 93.
Although she had been confined 'to bed for some time her
faculties were still well preserved, and the only evidence
of her condition was the decrease in appetite and weaken-
ing of her voice. She had always been very friendly to
me, and once when I was at her bedside, ready to tend
her affectionately, although that did not hinder me from
seeing her with the philosophical eye that I always turned
on everything about me, 'Is it you, my nephew?' she
said in her feeble voice. ' Yes, Aunt, I am here at your
service, and I think you will do very well to take a drop
of this good old wine.' ' Give it me, my dear ; I can always
take a little wine.' I made ready at once, and gently
supporting her, gave her half a glass of my best wine.
She brightened up at once, and turning on me her eyes
which used to be so beautiful, said : ' Thank you very
much for this last kindness ; if you ever reach my age you
will find that one wants to die just as one wants to sleep.'
These were her last words, and in half an hour she fell into
her last sleep." The details make it certain that this was'
1 Paris, 1834, 4th edition, vol. ii, p. 118.
NATURAL DEATH 127
a case of the instinct of natural death. The instinct showed
itself at an age not very great in the case of a woman who
had preserved her mental faculties. Generally, however, it
seems not to appear till much later, for old men usually
exhibit a keen wish to live.
It is a well-known saying that the longer a man has lived
the more he wishes to live. Charles Renouvier, 1 a French
philosopher who died a few years ago, has left a definite
proof of the truth of the saying. When he was eighty-
eight years old, arid knew that he was dying, he recorded his
impressions in his last days. Let me quote from what he
wrote four days before his death. " I have no illusions about
my condition ; I know quite well that I am going to die, per-
haps in a week, perhaps in a fortn-ight. And I have still
so much to say on my subject." "At my age I have no
longer the right to hope : my days are numbered, and
perhaps my hours. 1 must resign myself." " I do not die
without regrets. I regret that I cannot foresee in any way
the fate of my views." " And I am leaving the world
before I have said my last word. A man always dies
before he has finished his work, and that is the saddest of
the sorrows of life." " But that is not the whole trouble,
when a man is old, very old, and accustomed to life, it is
very difficult to die. I think that young men accept the
idea of dying more easily, perhaps more willingly than
old men. When one is more than eighty years old, one is
cowardly and shrinks from death. And when one knows
and can no longer doubt that death is coming near, deep
bitterness falls on the soul." " I have faced the question
from all sides in the last few days; I turn the one idea over
in my mind; I know that I am going to die, but I cannot
persuade myself that I am going to die. It is not the
1 Revue de metaphysique et de morale, March, 1904.
128 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
philosopher in me that protests. The philosopher does not
fear death ; it is the old man. The old man has not the
courage to submit, and yet I have to submit to the in-
evitable."
I know a lady, a hundred and two years old, who is so
oppressed by the idea of death, that those about her have to
conceal from her the death of any of her acquaintances.
Mde. Robineau, however, when between one hundred and
four and one hundred and five years old, became quite in-
different to the close approach of her own 'death. She often
expressed a wish for it, thinking herself useless in the
world.
M. Yves Delage 1 in an analysis of my "Nature of
Man " doubted the existence of an instinct for death.
" Animals," said he, " cannot have the instinct for death,
because they do not know of death. In their case, we must
consider that what happens is an apathy tending to the
abolition of the sense of self-preservation. In man, the
knowledge of death implies that the indifference to its
approach cannot be an instinct." "There may be de-
veloped, at the end of life, a special state of mind which
accepts death with indifference or with pleasure, but such
a state cannot be designated as an instinct." M. Delage,
however, does not suggest what the state of mind in ques-
tion is to be called. As the aunt of Brillat-Savarin com-
pared her sensations just before death with the desire to
sleep, and as this desire is an instinctive manifestation, I
think that the cheerful acquiescence in death, exhibited by
extremely old people, is also a kind of instinct. However,
the important matter is that the sentiment exists, and not
what we are to call it. M. Delage is far from denying its
existence.
1 Annfo biologique, vol. vii, p. 595.
NATURAL DEATH 129
Dr. Cancalon, 1 another of my critics, cannot admit the
existence of an instinct of death, "because of the theory
of evolution. Of what good would it have been, as M.
Metchnikoff tells us that natural death is very rare; how
could it have been transmitted, as it comes into existence
long after the age of reproduction, and how could it have
aided the survival of the species? If its existence were
proved as the result of biological evolution, it would be a
contradiction of adaptation and an argument in favour of
final causes." I .cannot agree in any way with these
opinions. In the first place, it is well known that men and
animals have many harmful instincts that do not tend to
the survival of the species. I need recall only the dis-
harmonic instincts which I described in the " Nature of
Man," such as the anomalies of the sexual instinct, the
instinct which drives parents to devour their young or
which attracts insects to flames. The instinct of natural
death is far from being harmful, and may even have many
advantages. If men were convinced that the end of life
were natural death accompanied by a special instinct like
that of the need for sleep, one of the greatest sources of
pessimism would disappear. Now pessimism is the cause
of the voluntary death of a certain number of people and of
many others refraining from reproduction. The instinct
of natural death would contribute to' the maintenance of
the life of the individual and of the species. On the other
hand, there is no difficulty in admitting the existence of
instincts hostile to the preservation of the species, espe-
cially in the case of man, in whom individualism has
reached its highest development. As man is the only
animal with a definite notion of death, there is nothing
extraordinary if it is in man that the instinctive wish for
1 Revue occidentals, July ist, 1904, vol. xxx, p. 87.
1 30 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
death develops. M. Cancalon denies the possibility that
death can be pleasant, as it is the arrest of the physio-
logical functions ; but as sleep and syncope are often pre-
ceded by very pleasant sensations, why may not this also
happen in natural death ? Several facts prove it beyond
dispute. It is even probable that the approach of natural
death is one of the most pleasant sensations that can exist.
It is indubitable that in a large number of cases of death,
the cessation of life is associated with very painful sensa-
tions. One has only to see the horror shown in the faces
of. many dying people to be convinced of this, but there
are diseases and serious accidents in which the approach
of death does not arouse sorrowful sensations. I myself,
in a crisis of intermittent fever, in which the temperature
descended in a very short time from about 106 Fahr. to
below normal, experienced a feeling of extraordinary
weakness, certainly like that at the approach of death. This
sensation was much more pleasant than painful. In two
cases of serious morphia poisoning, my sensations were
more agreeable ; I felt a pleasant weakness, associated with
a sensation of lightness of the body, as if I were floating
in the air.
Those who have noted tjie sensations of persons rescued
from death have related similar facts. Prof. Heim, of
Zurich, has described a fall in the mountains which nearly
killed him, as well as several similar accidents to Alpine
tourists. In all these cases he states that there was a sensa-
tion of pleasure. 1 Dr. Sollier has told of a young woman
addicted to morphia, who had been convinced that she was
at the point of death. On recovering from a most serious
attack of syncope, from which she was restored only by
giving another dose of morphia, she cried: "I seem to
1 Egger, " Le mot des mourants" Revue philosophique, 1896, i, p. 27.
NATURAL DEATH 1 3 1
come from far away; how happy I was! " Another of
Dr. Sollier's patients, a lady who had an attack of peri-
tonitis from which she expected to die, felt herself "suf-
fused with a feeling of well-being, or rather the absence of
all pain." In a third case of Dr. Sollier, a young woman
suffering from puerperal fever, feeling herself at the point
of death, had a similar sensation "of physical well-being
and of detachment from everything." 1
As a sensation of happiness occurs even in cases of patho-
logical death, it is much more likely to occur in natural
death. If natural death be preceded by the loss of the
instinct of life and by the acquisition of a new instinct, it
would be the best possible end compatible with the real
organisation of human nature.
I do not pretend to give the reader a finished study on
natural death. This chapter of Thanatology, the science
of death, only opens the subject; but it is already ap-
parent that study of the circumstances of natural death in
plants, in the animal world, and in human beings, may
give facts of the highest interest to science and humanity.-
1 Ibid.) pp. 303-307 ; v. also Bulletin de PInstitut gtntral phycholog.,
1903, p. 29.
PART IV
SHOULD WE TRY TO PROLONG
HUMAN LIFE?
THE BENEFIT TO HUMANITY
Complaints of the shortness of our life Theory of " medi-
cal selection " as a cause of degeneration of the race
Utility of prolonging human life
ALTHOUGH the duration of the life of man is one of the
longest amongst mammals, men find it too short. From
the remotest times the shortness of life has been complained
of, and there have been many attempts to prolong it. Man
has not been satisfied with a duration of life notably greater
than that of his nearest relatives, and has wished to live
at least as long as reptiles.
In antiquity, Hippocrates and Aristotle thought that
human life was too short, and Theophrastus, although he
died at an advanced age (he lived probably seventy-five
years) lamented when he was dying " that nature had given
to deer and to crows a life so long and so useless, and to
man only one that was often very short." 1
Seneca (Debrevitatevitce) and later, in the i8th century,
Haller, strove in vain against such complaints, which have
lasted until our own days. Whilst animals have no more
1 Cicero, Tusculanes, chap, xxviii.
THE BENEFIT TO HUMANITY 133
than an instinctive fear of danger, and cling to life without
knowing what death is, men have acquired an exact idea of
death, and their knowledge increases their desire to live.
Ought we to listen to the cry of humanity that life is too
short and that it would be well to prolong it ? Would it
really be for the good of the human race to extend the dura-
tion of the life of man beyond its present limits ? Already
it is complained that the burden of supporting old people is
too heavy, and statesmen are perturbed by the enormous
expense which will be entailed by State support of the
aged. In France, in a population of about 38 millions,
there are two millions (1,912, 153) who have reached the age
of 70, that is to say, about five per cent, of the total. The
support of these old people absorbs a sum of nearly
^6,000,000 per annum. 1 However generous may be the
views of the members of the French Parliament, many of
them hesitate at the idea of so great a burden. Without
doubt, men say, the cost of maintaining the aged will be-
come still heavier if the duration of life is to be prolonged.
If old people are to live longer, the resources of the young
will be reduced.
If the question were merely one of prolonging the life of
old people without modifying old age itself, such considera-
tions would be justified. It must be understood, however,
that the prolongation of life would be associated with the
preservation of intelligence and of the power to work. In
the earlier parts of this book I have given many examples
which show the possibility of useful work being done by
persons of advanced years. When we have reduced or
abolished such causes of precocious senility as intemperance
and disease, it will no longer be necessary to give pensions
1 Rapport de M. Bienvenu-Martin k la Chambre des deputes, Paris,
1903.
i 3 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
at the age of sixty or seventy years. The cost of supporting
the old, instead of increasing, will diminish progressively.
If attainment of the normal duration of life, which is
much greater than the average life to-day, were to over-
populate the earth, a very remote possibility, this could be
remedied by lowering the birth-rate. Even at the present
time, while the earth is far from being too quickly peopled,
artificial limitation of the birth-rate takes place perhaps to
an unnecessary extent.
It has long been a charge against medicine and hygiene
that they tend to weaken the human race. By scientific
means unhealthy people, or those with inherited blemishes,
have been preserved so that they can give birth to weak
offspring. If natural selection were allowed free play, such
individuals would perish and make room for others, stronger
and better able to live. Haeckel has given the name
" medical selection " to this process under which humanity
degenerates because of the influence of medical science.
It is clear that a valuable existence of great service
to humanity is compatible with a feeble constitution and
precarious health. Amongst tuberculous people, those
with inherited or acquired syphilis, and those with a con-
stitution unbalanced in other ways, that is to say, amongst
so-called degenerates, there have been individuals who have
had a large share in the advance of the human race. I need
only instance the names of Fresnel, Leopardi, Weber,
Schumann and Chopin. It does not follow that we ought
to cherish diseases and leave to natural selection the duty of
preserving the individuals which can resist them. On the
other hand, it is indispensable to try to blot out the diseases
themselves, and, in particular, the evils of old age, by the
methods of hygiene and therapeutics. The theory of medi-
cal selection must be given up as contrary to the good of the
THE BENEFIT TO HUMANITY 135
human race. We must use all our endeavours to allow men
to complete their normal course of life, and to make it pos-
sible for old men to play their parts as advisers and judges,
endowed with their long experience of life.
To the question propounded at the beginning of this sec-
tion of my book, I can make only one answer : Yes, it is
useful to prolong human life.
II
SUGGESTIONS FOR THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Ancient methods of prolonging human life Gerokomy
The " immortality draught " of the Taoists Brown-
Se"quard's method The spermine of Poehl Dr. Weber's
precepts Increased duration of life in historical times
Hygienic maxims Decrease in cutaneous cancer
MEN of all times have attempted all manner of devices to
bring about an increase of years, although they have not
considered the problem in its general bearing.
In Biblical times it was believed that contact with young
girls would rejuvenate and prolong the life of feeble old
men. In the first Book of Kings it is related as follows :
" Now King David was old and stricken in years; and
they covered him with clothes, but he gat no heat.
"Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be
sought for my Lord the king a young virgin ; let her stand
before the king and let her cherish him, and let her lie in
thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat " (Kings I.,
chap. i.).
This device, afterwards called gerokomy, was employed
by the Greeks and Romans, and has had followers in
modern times. Boerhave, the famous Dutch physician
(1668 1738), "recommended an old burgomaster of
Amsterdam to lie between two young girls, assuring him
that he would thus recover strength and spirits." After
quoting this, Hufeland, the well-known author of " Macro-
SUGGESTIONS FOR PROLONGING LIFE 137
biotique " in the eighteenth century, made the following
reflection : " If it be remembered how the exhalations
from newly opened animals stimulate paralysed limbs, and
how the application of living animals soothes a violent pain,
we cannot refuse our approval to the method." 1
Cohausen, a doctor of the eighteenth century, published a
treatise on a Roman, Hermippus, who had died aged a
hundred and fifteen years. He had been a master in a
school for young girls, and his life, passed in their midst,
was greatly prolonged. " Accordingly," commented
Hufeland (p. 6), " he gives the excellent advice to breathe
the air of young girls night and morning, and gives his
assurance that by so doing the vital forces will be
strengthened and preserved, as adepts know well that the
breath of young girls contains the vital principle in all its
purity."
In the Eastern half of the world equal ingenuity was exer-
cised in the attempt to rejuvenate the body and renew the
forces of man. The successors of Lao-Ts searched for a
beverage that would confer immortality and have recounted
extraordinary matters concerning it.
The Emperor of China, Chi-Hoang-Ti (221 209 B.C.),
displayed extreme friendliness to the Taoists, believing that
these had the secret of long life and immortality. In his
reign, Su-Chi, a Taoist magician, persuaded him that east-
wards of China there lay fortunate islands inhabited by
genii whose pleasure it was to give their guests to drink of
a beverage conferring immortality. Chi-Hoang-Ti was so
delighted with the news that he equipped an expedition to
discover the islands. 2
1 L'Art de prolonger la vie humaine (French translation), Lausanne,
1809, p. 5.
1 A. ReVille, Histoire des religions, vol. iii, Paris, 1889,^428.
i 3 8 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Later on, in the dynasty of the Tchengs (618 907), when
Taoism had again become a religion in favour at court,
efforts were made to obtain imperial patronage for the
draught of immortality, and magicians were in high favour.
The Taoist writers called this drink Tan or Kin-Tan, the
"golden elixir." According to Mayers, the chief ingredi-
ents of this marvellous compound were " cinnabar, the red
sulphate of mercury, and a red salt of arsenic, potassium
and mother-of-pearl. The preparation of it required nine
months, and it passed through nine changes. One who
had drunk of it was changed to a crane, and in this form
could ascend to the dwellings of the genii, there to abide
with them." 1
The Taoists represent their saints, in the shade of willows,
seeking the elixir of life, and in Chinese Buddhist temples
there are placed votive cakes shaped like the tortoise, a
sacred animal and the symbol of long life. Worshippers
let stones of divination fall on these cakes and so ascertained
if their lives were to be prolonged, promising for each sub-
sequent year as many cakes as the divinity might demand.
The mysticism of the East reached Europe in the Middle
Ages, and then, and even in modern times, drugs were used
to prolong life. Cagliostro, the celebrated quack of the
eighteenth century, boasted that he had discovered an elixir
of life by the use of which he had survived for many
thousand years.
There still exists, in some modern pharmacopoeias, an
" elixir ad longam vitam " compounded of aloes and other
purgatives. Analogous preparations are known, such
as the " vital essence of Augsburg " which is a mixture of
purgatives and resins.
Serious physicians have rejected such preparations of the
1 A. R^ville, loc. cit., p. 455.
SUGGESTIONS FOR PROLONGING LIFE 139
quacks. They have abandoned the search for a specific,
and, in their efforts to prolong human life, have relied on
common rules of hygiene, such as cleanliness, exercise,
fresh air, and general sobriety. In our own days, Brown-
Sequard is an isolated instance of a seeker for a specific
against senescence. This distinguished physiologist, set-
ting out from the view that the weakness of old men is due
partly to diminution of the secretions of the testes, hoped
to find a remedy in the employment of subcutaneous injec-
tions of emulsions of the testes of animals (dogs and guinea-
pigs). Brown-S^quard, 1 then aged 72 years, gave himself
several such injections, and declared that he found himself
reinforced and rejuvenated. Since then, numbers of per-
sons have undergone the treatment which for a time was in
vogue. The observations of physicians, made on old men
and sick persons, have not justified the hopes which were
entertained of the mode of treatment. Furbringer, 2 in par-
ticular, working in Germany, has discredited the injections
of Brown-S^quard. However, instead of following exactly
the original prescription, Furbringer employed a testicular
emulsion which had been previously raised to the boiling-
point. Brown-Se"quard's method has not resisted scientific
investigation, and although it is still occasionally employed
in France, it has been given up in many countries.
Brown-Se'quard laid stress on the efficacy of emulsions of
testis as opposed to chemical substances prepared from the
gland. Other scientific men, on the other hand, have
attached value to such substances and in particular to an
organic alkali the salt of which is known as spermine.
That salt, made by Poehl of St. Petersburg, has been
largely used. Several observers declare that its employ-
1 Comptes rendus de la Societt de Biologie, 1899, p. 415.
2 Deutsche medicin. Wochenschrift^ 1891, p. 1027.
i 4 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
ment, injected in solution or even absorbed directly as a
powder, has been followed by a strengthening of bodily
power enfeebled by age or labour.
As I have no personal experience of spermine, I shall
quote from Professor Poehl 1 some indications of its effi-
cacy. Several physicians (Drs. Maximovitch, Bukojemsky,
Krieger and Postoeff) have given injections of spermine
to enfeebled old men who had lost appetite and sleep, and
have noted improvement lasting for months. From the
instances given, I have selected that of an old lady of
ninety-five years, afflicted with severe sclerosis of the arte-
ries, with no appetite, a bad digestion and constipation.
This patient had complained for several years of sacral
pains, and moreover was nearly quite deaf and suffered from
periodic attacks of malarial fever. The injections of sper-
mine, given for a period of fifteen months, restored the old
lady to such an extent that she recovered her power of
hearing and felt the sacral pains only slightly and after a
long walk. Her general condition was highly satisfactory.
Spermine, as it has been used medically, is prepared not
only from the testes of animals but from the prostate gland,
ovary, pancreas, thyroid gland and spleen. The substance
is not specially associated with spermatozoa but has a wide
distribution in the mammalian body.
In the medical treatment of the evils of old age, testicular
emulsions or spermine have not been so favoured as general
hygienic measures. Dr. Weber, 2 a London medical man,
has recently summarised more general measures, and his
evidence is the more important as he has been able to test
1 Die physiologisch-chemisch. Grundlagen d. Spermintheorie, Berlin,
1898.
2 British Medical Journal, 1904 ; Deutsche Mediz. Wochenschr.^ 1904,
Nos. 1 8-2 1.
SUGGESTIONS FOR PROLONGING LIFE 141
the efficacy of his precepts in his own case. Dr. Weber is
83 years old, and in his practice has cared for many other
old men.
The following are the precepts which Dr. Weber formu-
lated : All the organs must be preserved in a condition
of vigour. It is necessary to recognise and subdue any
morbid tendencies whether these be hereditary or have been
acquired during life. It is necessary to be moderate in
food and drink, and in all other physical pleasures. The
air should be pure in the dwelling and in the vicinity.
It is necessary to take exercise daily, whatever be the
weather. In many cases the respiratory movements must
be specially exercised, and exercise on level ground and
up-hill should be taken. The persons should go to bed
early and rise early, and not sleep for more than six or seven
hours. A bath should be taken daily and the skin should
be well rubbed, the water used being hot or cold, accord-
ing to taste. Sometimes it is advantageous to use hot
and cold water. Regular work and mental occupation are
indispensable. It is useful to stimulate the enjoyment of
life so that the mind may be tranquil and full of hope. On
the other hand, the passions must be controlled and the
nervous sensations of grief avoided. Finally, there must
be a resolute intention to preserve the health, to avoid
alcohol and other stimulants as well as narcotics and
soothing drugs.
By following his own precepts, Dr. Weber has enjoyed a
vigorous and happy old age. A Mde. Nausenne, who died
on March I2th, 1756, at the age of 125 years, in the Dinay
Infirmary (C6tes-du-Nord) explained the secret of her still
greater longevity as follows : " Extreme sobriety, no worry,
body and mind quite calm " (Chemin, op. cit., p. 101).
Hygienic measures have been the most successful in
prolonging life and in lessening the ills of old age.
i 4 2 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Although until quite recently hygiene has rested upon a
very small number of scientifically established facts, and
although its precepts have not been followed rigidly, none
the less it has already succeeded in increasing the dura-
tion of human life. This becomes evident if we compare
the mortality tables of the present day with those of the
past.
There is reason to state definitely that the mortality in
civilised countries has decreased on the whole in the last
one or two centuries. I have taken some facts regarding
this from the valuable monograph of M. Westergaard. 1
That author came to the conclusion that the mortality rate
in the igth century in civilised countries was "much
lower than in most earlier centuries." This diminution
has been chiefly in infantile mortality. According to
Mallet, the mortality rate of infants in the first year of
their life was, in Geneva, 26 per cent, in the i6th century,
and fell gradually to 16^ per cent, at the beginning of the
igth century. A similar change has been reported from
Berlin, Holland, Denmark and other places. However,
it is not only very young infants that have shown a diminu-
tion in the death-rate. The life of old people has been
prolonged to an extent equally remarkable. The follow-
ing are some of the facts which support this statement.
Whilst the old Protestant clergymen of Denmark at ages
varying from 74^ to 8g years had a mortality rate of 22
per cent, in the second half of the i8th century, the rate
had sunk to 16*4 per cent, by the middle of the igth
century. This is not an isolated fact. The old clergymen
of England (65 to 95 years) have also come to live longer,
because in the i8th century the mortality rate was 11*5
percent, and in the igth century (1800-1860) only io'8 per
cent. There has been a similar decrease in the mortality
1 Die Lehre -von d. Mortalitaet u. Mcrbilitaet, 2nd edition, Jena, 1901.
SUGGESTIONS FOR PROLONGING LIFE 143
rate in the members of both sexes of the Royal Houses
of Europe (Westergaard, p. 284).
From 1841 to 1850, in England and Wales i62'8i in-
dividuals out of every thousand of both sexes died annually,
but the corresponding figure for the period 1881 to 1890
was decreased to 153 '67 per thousand.
Westergaard (p. 296) has displayed in a most useful
table the mortality in the chief countries of Europe and
in the State of Massachusetts, in two periods of time. In
the case of old persons from 70 to 75 years, there has
been a constant decrease in the death-rate, without any
exceptions. The exact statistics collected by Pension
Bureaus and Life Assurance Companies exhibit the same
general tendency.
It cannot be disputed then that there has been a general
increase in the duration of life, and that old people live
longer at the present time than in former ages. This
fact, however, cannot be taken absolutely, and it is still
possible that in particular cases there may have been more
centenarians hitherto than at present.
The prolongation of life which has come to pass in
recent centuries must certainly be attributed to the advance
of hygiene. The general measures for the preservation
of health, although they were not specially directed to old
people, have had an effect of increasing their longevity.
As in the i8th century and for the greater part of the
1 9th, the science of hygiene was in a very rudimentary
condition, we may well believe that improvement in clean-
liness and in the general conditions have contributed largely
to the prolongation of life. It is now a long time since
Liebig said that the amount of soap used could be taken
as a measure of the degree of civilisation of a people. As a
matter of fact, cleanliness of the body brought about
in the most simple way, by washing with soap, has had
H4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
a most important effect in lessening disease and mor-
tality from disease. In this connection, the fact recently
published by Prof. Czerny, 1 a well-known German
surgeon, has a special interest. Although cancer, the
special scourge of old age, has increased in recent times,
one form of the disease, cancer of the skin, has diminished
notably. " Cancers of the skin," Prof. Czerny says, " are
met with almost exclusively on uncovered regions of the
body, or on parts accessible to the hands. They develop
especially where the susceptibility is increased by ulcers
or scars which are easily soiled. And so it happens that
in the classes where care is taken as to cleanliness cancer
of the skin is very rare and certainly much more rare
than it used to be."
M. Westergaard thinks that vaccination against small-
pox has been of considerable importance in lowering the
death-rate in the igth century. This, however, can have
had little effect on the duration of life in old people, as
deaths due to small-pox in the old are excessively rare.
For instance, in the second half of the i8th century, that
is to say before the introduction of Jenner's method, the
mortality from small-pox at Berlin was 9'8 per cent, of
all the deaths, but of these only o'6 per cent, were cases
of persons more than fifteen years old. The rest, that is to
say, 99*3 per cent, fell on children under that age. It
may be supposed that most of the old people at that time
were already protected by previous attacks of small-pox,
contracted when they were young.
If hygiene were able to prolong life when if was little
developed, as was the case until recently, we may well
believe that, with our greater knowledge of to-day, a much
better result will be obtained.
1 Medizinische Klinik, 1905, No. 22.
Ill
DISEASES THAT SHORTEN LIFE
Measures against infectious diseases as aiding in the pro-
longation of life Prevention of syphilis Attempts to prepare
serums which could strengthen the higher elements of the
organism
ATTACKS of infectious diseases incurred during life fre-
quently shorten its duration and it has been observed that
most centenarians have enjoyed good health throughout
their lives. Syphilis is the most important of these dis-
eases. It is not really a cause of death itself, but it pre-
disposes the organism to the attacks of other diseases,
amongst the latter being some particularly fatal to old
people, such as diseases of the heart and blood-vessels
(angina pectoris and aneurism of the aorta) and some
malignant tumours, especially cancer of the tongue and
of the mouth. To lengthen human life, it is a fundamental
necessity to avoid infection by syphilis. To reach this
result everything must be done to spread medical know-
ledge about such diseases. It is absolutely necessary to
overcome the deeply rooted prejudice in favour of con-
cealing everything relating to sexual matters. Complete
information should be widely spread as to the means of
protecting humanity against this awful scourge. It has
now been possible to apply experimental methods to the
146 THE PROLONGATION F LIFE
investigation of this disease, and science has obtained a
series of results of the highest practical utility. Prof.
Neisser of Breslau, one of the most distinguished of modern
venereal physicians, has summed up the present state of
knowledge of these matters in the following lines. 1 " It
is our duty as medical men," he says, "to recommend
strongly as a means of disinfection in all possible cases
of contagion the calomel ointment which Metchnikoff and
Roux have advised." It is to be hoped that future genera-
tions, by following this advice, will see an enormous
diminution in the number of cases of syphilis.
Syphilis, however, although a very important factor, is
not alone in shortening the life of man. A very large num-
ber of persons die prematurely although they have not con-
tracted that disease. We do not know the duration of
human life before the arrival of syphilis in Europe, but
there is no reason to think that it was very different from
what it is to-day. We must, therefore, try to prevent as
many infectious diseases as possible, and recent advances in
medicine have made this task much less difficult. Pneu-
monia, it is true, the most common infectious disease
amongst the old, cannot yet be easily avoided. All the anti-
pneumonic serums which have hitherto been prepared have
turned out to have little efficacy ; but there is no reason to
give up the hope that this problem will yet be solved.
Diseases of the heart, which are common in extreme
old age, are particularly difficult to avoid, because in most
cases we do not know sufficiently well their primary causes.
In so far as they depend upon intemperance or infectious
diseases such as syphilis, they can be avoided by the em-
ployment of suitable measures.
As the higher elements of the body in old people become
1 Die experimentelle Syphilisforschung, Berlin, 1906, p. 82.
DISEASE THAT SHORTEN LIFE 147
weaker and are devoured by the macrophags, it seems
probable that the destruction or deterioration of these
voracious cells would tend to the prolongation of life.
However, as the macrophags are indispensable in the
struggle against the microbes of infectious diseases, and
particularly of chronic disease, such as tuberculosis, it is
necessary to preserve them. We must turn rather to the
idea of a remedy which could strengthen the higher
elements and make them a less ready prey to the macro-
phags.
In the " Nature of Man " (Chap. III.) in discussing the
simian origin of mankind, I touched on the existence of
animal serums that have the power of dissolving the
blood corpuscles of other species of animals. There is
now, in biological science, a new chapter upon such
serums, which have been called cytotoxic serums because
they are able to poison the cells of organs.
The blood and blood serum of some animals act as
poisons when they are introduced into an organism. Eels
and snakes, even non-poisonous snakes, are cases in point.
A small quantity of the blood of a snake, an adder for
instance, injected into a mammal (rabbit, guinea-pig, or
mouse) soon brings about death. The blood of some
mammals is poisonous to other mammals, although in a
lesser degree than that of snakes. The dog is specially
notable from the fact that its blood is poisonous to other
mammals, whilst, on the other hand, the blood and blood
serum of the sheep, goat, and horse have generally little
effect on other animals and on man. It is for this reason
that these animals, and particularly the horse, are used in
the preparation of the serums employed in medicine.
Now, these harmless serums become poisonous when
they have been taken from animals which have been first
L 2
148 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
treated with the blood or the organs of other species of
animals. For instance, the blood serum of a sheep which
has been treated with the blood of a rabbit becomes
poisonous because it has acquired the power of dissolving
the red blood corpuscles of the rabbit. It is a poison in
the case of the rabbit, but is harmless to most other
animals. The injection of the rabbit's blood into the sheep
has conferred on the sheep a new property which comes
into operation only with regard to the red blood corpuscles
of the rabbit. We have here to do with something analo-
gous to what has been observed in the cases of serums
used to arrest infectious disease. When the bacilli of
diphtheria, or their products, have been injected into
horses, there is produced an anti-diphtheric serum, capable
of curing diphtheria, but powerless against tetanus or
plague. After M. J. M. Bordet of the Pasteur Institute
had made his discovery of serums that had acquired
the power of dissolving the red blood corpuscles of other
animals, the attempt was made to prepare similar serums
directed against all the other elements of the body, such
as white blood corpuscles, renal and nervous cells. In
the course of these investigations it was proved to be neces-
sary to employ a certain dose of the serum in order to
obtain the poisonous result. If smaller quantities of the
poisonous dose were used, the reverse effect was produced.
Thus a serum, strong doses of which dissolved the red
blood corpuscles and so made them less numerous in the
blood, increased the number of these when given in very
small doses.
M. Cantacuzene was the first to establish this fact in
the case of the rabbit, whilst M. Besredka and I myself
did it in the case of man. 1 Since then M. Belonovsky of
1 Annales de VInstitut Pas/eitr, 1900, pp. 369-413.
DISEASES THAT SHORTEN LIFE 149
Cronstadt has confirmed the result on anaemic patients,
treating them with small quantities of serum. He has
been able to produce in them an increase in the number
of the red blood corpuscles, and in the quantity of the red
colouring matter (haemoglobin) in the blood. Later on
M. Andre 1 devoted much attention to this matter at
Lyons. He prepared a serum by injecting human blood
into animals and made use of it in the case of several
persons who suffered from anaemia from different causes.
In the case of patients, the anasmic condition of which had
hitherto remained stationary, Dr. Andre found a sudden
increase in the number of red corpuscles after injecting
small doses of the serum. M. Besredka, in the case of
laboratory animals, increased the number of white cor-
puscles by injecting them with a small quantity of a serum,
strong doses of which destroyed these cells.
These facts are only a special case of the general rule
that small doses of poisons increase the activity of the
elements that are killed by large doses. In order to
increase the activity of the heart, medical men give success-
fully small doses of cardiac poisons such as digitalis.
As a commercial process, the activity of yeasts is increased
by submitting them to weak doses of substances (fluoride
of sodium) which, given in larger quantities, would kill
them.
My general conclusion from these facts is that it is
logical to lay down the principle that the higher elements
of our body could be strengthened by subjecting them to
the action of small doses of the appropriate cytotoxic
serums. There is, however, much difficulty in putting
this into practice. It is quite easy to obtain human blood
to inject into animals with the object of preparing a serum
1 Les serums hemolytiques, Lyon, 1903.
1 5 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
which can increase the number of red corpuscles. On the
other hand, it is extremely difficult to get human bodies
sufficiently fresh to use them for a practical purpose.
According to law, post mortem examinations can be made
only after an interval of time in course of which the tissues
have changed ; besides, the organs obtained in this way are
frequently affected by injuries or diseases militating
against their use. Even in Paris, with its three million
inhabitants, it is extremely rare that there is a good oppor-
tunity for the preparation of human cytotoxic serums.
In two or three years, during which Dr. Weinberg has
collected the organs from human bodies fairly fresh, he
has been unable to obtain sufficiently active serums.
The best results have been obtained from new-born
infants which have been killed by some accident in the
process of child-birth, as in them the organs are in a
normal state. However, owing to the advance in the
practice of obstetrics, such accidents, already infrequent,
are becoming extremely rare. In such conditions we
may have to wait long before getting a positive result,
unless the future will find some method of obtaining the
necessary materials for this difficult and interesting
purpose.
As it is so difficult to prepare a remedy which can
strengthen the weakened higher elements of the body, it
may be easier to find a means of preventing the weakening
which interferes so much with our desire to live long.
As the products of microbes are the most active agents in
deteriorating our tissues, we must look towards them for
the solution of the problem.
IV
INTESTINAL PUTREFACTION SHORTENS LIFE
Uselessness of the large intestine in man Case of a woman
whose large intestine was inactive for six months Another
case where the greater part of the large intestine was com-
pletely shut off Attempts ti disinfect the contents of the
large intestine Prolonged mastication as a means of
preventing intestinal putrefaction
THE general measures of hygiene directed against infec-
tious diseases play a part in prolonging the lives of old
people, but, in addition to the microbes which invade the
body from outside, there is a rich source of harm in the
microbes which inhabit the body. The most important
of these belong to the intestinal flora, which is abundant
and varied.
The intestinal microbes are most numerous in the large
intestine. This organ, which is useful to mammals the
food of which consists of rough bulky vegetable matter,
and which require a large reservoir for the waste of the
process of digestion, is certainly useless in the case of
man. 1 In the " Nature of Man " I have dealt with this
1 According to a recent publication of M. Ellenberger (Archiv. /.
Anatomie u. Physiologic, Physiologische Abtheilung, 1906, p. 139), the
caeca of the horse, pig and rabbit, play an active part in the digestion
of vegetable matter, which is rich in cellulose. At the end of his
treatise, Ellenberger insist that the vermiform appendix of the caecum
is not a rudimentary organ. The reason why the appendix can be
1 52 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
question at length, as it was an important example of
what I regard as the disharmonies of the human constitu-
tion. A case upon which I have always laid great stress
is that of a woman who lived for thirty-seven years,
although her large intestine was atrophied and inactive, as
this seems to be a remarkable proof of the uselessness of
the organ in the human body. The small size or complete
absence of the large intestine in many vertebrates confirms
my conclusion. None the less, some of my critics think
that my argument is incomplete. To strengthen it, I may
call their attention to a medical observation which is as
valuable as if it had been an experiment. It relates to a
woman, sixty-two years old, a patient of Prof. Kocher at
Berne. She had been suffering from a strangulated hernia
associated with gangrene of part of the intestine, and had
to be operated upon suddenly ,
The gangrenous portion of the ileum having been re-
moved, the healthy part was implanted in the skin so as
to form an artificial aperture through which waste matter
from the food passed to the exterior without traversing the
large intestine. Although the patient was old and seriously
ill, the operation, performed by M. Tavel, was quite suc-
cessful. Six months later, in a new operation, the small
intestine was rejoined to the large intestine so that the
faeces were again able to pass to the exterior by the natural
channel. In this case, then, the large intestine was thrown
out of use for half a year, not only without injury to the
general health, but with the result that the patient was corn-
removed in the case of man without disturbance to the functions of
the body, is that this work can be performed by the Peyer's patches of the
intestine. The existence of the appendix is not necessary to the normal
processes of the body, and is a real danger to health and sometimes
to life. Comparative study of the caeca in birds shows that these organs
are in process of degeneration.
PUTREFACTION SHORTENS LIFE 153
pletely cured and gained in weight. MM. Macfadyen,
Nencki, and Mde. Sieber J studied the digestive processes
in the small intestine and the nutritive metabolism, and
determined that these were active and healthy, the absence
of intestinal putrefaction, that evil of the constitution, being
specially favourable.
In six months of non-action, the part played by an organ
FIG. 19. Diagram of the lower bowel in a female patient.
A.C.N., Artificial anus : A.S., Insertion of the ileum to the colon.
(After M. Mauclaire.)
can be satisfactorily estimated. M. Mauclaire, 2 however,
has put on record a case the history of which was longer.
In 1902 he operated on a young woman and produced an
artificial anus, there being no escape of faecal' matter by
the ordinary channel. Ten months later M. Mauclaire
operated a second time and shut off a portion of the intes-
tine. He left the artificial anus, but cut across
1 Archiv.fur experimented Pathologic, vol. xxviii, p. 311.
2 Sixtime Congrh <fe Chirurgic, Paris, 1903, p. 86.
'54
THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the lower end of the small intestine and inserted
it near the iliac end of the descending colon (Fig.
19). For several days after the operation the faces
were passed by the normal aperture, as the small intes-
tine now communicated directly with the large intestine,
near the rectum. This condition, however, did not persist,
for the faecal matter began to flow back through the ex-
cluded portion of the large intestine, so reaching the artifi-
FIG. 20. Diagram of the lower bowel, after a third operation, on the case
in Fig. 19.
(After M. Mauclaire.)
cial anus, and causing inconvenience. Giving up the hope
that this would cease, M. Mauclaire performed a third
operation twenty months later. He cut across the large
intestine near the point vvrfiere the small intestine had been
artificially led into it (Fig. 20), so dividing the digestive
tube into two parts, one of which remained in communica-
tion with the natural anus, whilst the other, consisting of
PUTREFACTION SHORTENS LIFE 155
nearly the whole of the large intestine, communicated with
the exterior by the artificial anus. In the new state of
affairs, the food refuse passed directly into the terminal
portion of the large intestine, and thence, by way of the
rectum, to the exterior through the normal anus without
being able to pass up the large intestine towards the arti-
ficial anus. In this last operation about a yard of the small
intestine and the greater part of the large intestine, the
caecum, and ascending, transverse and descending colons
were removed from activity.
By the kindness of M. Mauclaire, I have been able to
watch his patient during the last four years. I satisfied
myself that after the supposed exclusion of the large intes-
tine, food dejecta ascended the colon and emerged by the
artificial anus. There was such an accumulation of waste
in the large intestine that fragments did not emerge until
three, weeks after the meal of which they had formed part.
It was only after the final operation, that in which the large
intestine was separated, that the dejecta escaped only by the
natural anus, whilst a little mucus containing microbes was
passed through the artificial aperture. Even three years
after the operation, mucus continued to escape by the latter
aperture, it being shown thus that after the large intestine
had ceased to be a channel for the faeces, its walls continued
to secrete although otherwise it had lost its function com-
pletely. Nevertheless the condition of this patient improved
and she 'lived perfectly well without a functional large in-
testine. She takes food well but has to go to stool three
or four times a day and has a tendency to diarrhoea. The
excreta are smooth and often nearly liquid, especially after
fruit has been eaten.
The case I have been describing, and which I am still
keeping under observation, demonstrates once more the use-
lessness of the human large intestine; it should convert the
156 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
most sceptical critic. But it also shows that the suppres-
sion of nearly the entire large intestine for several years
does not completely get rid of the intestinal flora. Even
without this evidence, however, I do not suggest that re-
moval of the large intestine can be thought of as a means to
prevent the pernicious effect of the intestinal flora.
Is it possible, without operative interference, to take
direct action against the intestinal flora by the use of anti-
septics ? Consideration of this is already ancient history.
When the theory that the intestine was a source of auto-
intoxication was propounded, M. Bouchard 1 made the at-
tempt to cure such cases by disinfecting the digestive tube
with /9-naphthol. He found, however, that that anti-
septic, like many others, not only did not completely dis-
infect the intestine but sometimes had a harmful effect on
the body.
M. Stern 2 has shown, in an elaborate memoir, that such
antiseptics as calomel, salol, /S-naphthol, naphthaline, and
camphor, when administered in quantities compatible with
health, do not disinfect the digestive tube at all. More
recently M. Strasburger 3 has shown that when naphthaline
has been given in quantities sufficient to impart its odour to
the faeces, the intestinal microbes, so far from being dimin-
ished, are even increased in numbers. On the other hand,
after meals consisting of milk to which there has been
added an antiseptic in the proportion of a quarter of a gram
to the litre, the intestinal microbes are really reduced in
number. Strasburger obtained his best results with tano-
col. Two persons who used, according to this method,
three to six grams of tanacol per day, displayed a notable
reduction in quantity of the intestinal flora.
Strasburger's conclusion was that " the attempt to destroy
1 Lemons sur les auto-intoxications, Paris, 1886.
Zeitschrift fitr Hygiene, 1892, vol. xii, p. 88.
ZeitschrifUfiirkliniache Median, 1903, vol. xlviii, p. 491.
PUTREFACTION SHORTENS LIFE 157
the intestinal microbes by the use of chemical agents has
little chance of success." It cannot be denied that under
special circumstances it is possible to decrease the number
of microbes, especially in the small intestine. But this
result is small and may be followed by the contrary effect,
for the natural means of defence of the intestine against
microbes are weakened, and the intestine itself may be
harmed more than the microbes.
Strasburger, moreover, is no convinced advocate of the
use of purgatives. The diminution of the sulpho-con jugate
ethers in the urine, which certainly may follow the
use of purgatives, does not necessarily indicate reduced
putrefaction in the intestine, but may point only to a less-
ened absorption of the bacterial products. Such an inter-
pretation is supported by an observed fact ; in the case of a
dog belonging to Strasburger, which had a fistula of the
small intestine, the diarrhoea induced by calomel was ac-
companied by an indubitable increase in the total quantity
of intestinal microbes.
Strasburger thinks that the most favourable results can
be obtained by aiding the intestine in the discharge of its
normal function. If it can be brought to digest the food
more completely, there is the less pabulum left for the
microbes. A similar result can be reached by lowering the
amount of food taken, and to this course the beneficial
effects of starvation in acute diseases of the intestine may
be attributed.
The general conclusion, reached after many experiments
on the disinfection of the intestine, is unfavourable. Very
little is to be expected from the method. None the lessI
cannot regard the matter as definitely settled. Cohendy
has investigated the effect on the intestinal flora of thymol
which was administered in several cases with the object
158 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
of destroying parasites. From nine to twelve grammes of
thymol were administered to each patient in the space of
three days, and there was a notable antiseptic effect,
Cohendy believing that the quantity of microbes had been
reduced to a thirteenth.
Such facts prove only that the antiseptic treatment is
available up to a certain point. To attain the results, how-
ever, such large quantities must be used that the treatment
can be applied only in special cases and at long intervals.
More use can be made of simple purgatives which do not
kill the microbes but eliminate them by the normal channel.
It has been urged repeatedly that calomel, which is often
used as a purgative, acts also as an intestinal antiseptic ;
but it is probable that its influence in reducing the intes-
tinal flora is merely mechanical. It has been shown that
calomel, like some other purgatives, lessens intestinal
putrefaction, the evidence being the decrease in the
sulpho-conjugate ethers in the urine. But although the
diarrhoea induced by purgatives generally has such a result,
spontaneous diarrhoeas such as those of typhoid fever and
of intestinal tuberculosis are associated with increased
putrefaction. 1
It is clear, however these matters may be settled, that
regular activity of the bowels, increased by the occasional
use of purgatives, must diminish the formation of intestinal
poisons, and therefore also the damage done by these to
the higher elements of the body.
When I asked the relatives of Mde. Robineau if they
could tell me of any special circumstance which in their
opinion had contributed to the extreme duration of the life
1 There is a summary of this question in Gerhardt's work on intes-
tinal putrefaction, in Ergebnisse der Physiologic, 3rd year, section i,
Wiesbaden, 1904, pp. 107-154.
PUTREFACTION SHORTENS LIFE 159
of this old lady, they replied as follows : " We are con-
vinced that a slight bodily derangement, present for the last
fifty years, has tended to prolong the life of the old lady.
It cannot be said that she has suffered from diarrhoea, but
she has been often subject to frequent calls of nature." It
was most remarkable that the old lady showed no traces of
sclerosis of the arteries. I may mention the strongly con-
trasting case of one of my old colleagues to whom a natural
desire to empty the bowels came only once a week. A
more frequent call was a sign of illness in his case. Now
sclerosis of the arteries appeared in so marked a form that
he died from it before he had reached the age of fifty years.
This may be added to the list of facts which point to a
close association between sclerosis of the arteries and the
functions of the digestive tube.
Recently, at the suggestion of Mr. Fletcher, 1 the advan-
tage of eating extremely slowly has been recognised, the
object being to prepare for the utilisation of the food mate-
rials, and to prevent intestinal putrefaction. Certainly the
habit of eating quickly favours the multiplication of
microbes round about the lumps of food which have been
swallowed without sufficient mastication. It is quite harm-
ful, however, to chew the food too long, and to swallow it
only after it has been kept in the mouth for a considerable
time. Too complete a use of the food material causes want
of tone in the intestinal wall, from which as much harm
may come as from imperfect mastication. In America,
where Fletcher's theory took its origin, there has already
been described under the name of " Bradyfagy" a disease
arising from the habit of eating too slowly. Dr. Einhorn^ 8
1 The A B C of our Nutrition^ New York, 1903 ; Dr. Regnault, Nov.
I, " L'art de manger," La Revue, 1906, p. 92.
* Zeitschr.f. diatetischev.physikal. Therapie^. viii, 1904, 1905.
160 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
a well-known specialist in the diseases of the digestive sys-
tem, has found that several cases of this disease were
rapidly cured when the patients made up their minds to eat
more quickly again. Comparative physiology supplies us
with arguments against too prolonged mastication. Rumi-
nants, which carry out to the fullest extent Mr. Fletcher's
plan, are notable for extreme intestinal putrefaction and for
the short duration of their lives. On the other hand, birds
and reptiles, which have a very poor mechanism for break-
ing up food, enjoy much longer lives.
Prolonged mastication, then, cannot be recommended as
a preventative of intestinal putrefaction any more than the
surgical removal of the large intestine or the disinfection of
the digestive tube. The field lies open for other means
which may probably solve the problem more completely
and more practically.
LACTIC ACID AS INHIBITING INTESTINAL PUTREFACTION
The development of the intestinal flora in man Harmless-
ness of sterilised food Means of preventing the putrefaction
of food Lactic fermentation and its anti-putrescent action
Experiments on man and mice Longevity in races which
use soured milk Comparative study of different soured
milks Properties of the Bulgarian Bacillus Means of pre-
venting intestinal putrefaction with the help of microbes
AT birth the human intestine is full, but contains no
microbes. Microbes very soon appear in it, because the
meconium, the contents of the intestines of new-born chil-
dren, composed of bile and cast-off intestinal mucus cells,
is an excellent culture medium for them. In the first hours
after birth, microbes begin to reach the intestine. In the
first day, before the child has taken any food whatever,
there is to be found in the meconium a varied flora, com-
posed of several species of microbes. Under the influence
of the mother's milk this flora is reduced and comes to be
composed almost entirely of a special microbe described by
M. Tissier and called by him Bacillus bifidus.
The food, therefore, has an influence on the microbes of
the intestine. If the child be fed with cow's milk, the flora
is richer in species than in the case of a child suckled by
its mother. Later on, also, the flora varies with the food,
as has been proved by MM. Macfadyen, Nencki, and Mde.
M
1 62 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Sieber in the case of a woman with an intestinal fistula.
The dependence of the intestinal microbes on the food
makes it possible to adopt measures to modify the flora in
our bodies and to replace the harmful microbes by useful
microbes. Unfortunately, our actual knowledge of the in-
testinal flora is still very imperfect because of the impos-
sibility of finding artificial media in which it could be
grown. Notwithstanding this difficulty, however, a
rational solution of the problem must be sought.
Man, even in the savage condition, prepares his food be-
fore eating it. He submits much of it to the action of fire,
thus notably lessening the number of microbes. Microbes
enter the digestive tube in vast numbers with raw food,
and in order to lessen the number of species in the
intestines, it is important to eat only cooked food and to
drink only liquids that have been previously boiled. In
that way, although we cannot destroy all the microbes in
the food, because some of them can withstand the tempera-
ture of the boiling point of water, we can kill the great
majority of them.
It has sometimes been supposed that cooked or com-
pletely sterilised food (that is to say food that has been
subjected to a temperature of from 248-284 Fahr.) is
harmful to the organism and that much of it is not well
digested. From this point of view protests have been
made against the feeding of infants with sterilised milk
or even with boiled milk. Although in certain cases steril-
ised milk is not well supported by infants, it cannot be
doubted but that boiled milk and cooked food are generally
successful. The large number of children brought up suc-
cessfully on boiled cow's milk and the health of travellers
in arctic regions are ample proof of this. I have been
told by M. Charcot that in his voyage to the antarctic
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 163
regions, he and his companions lived entirely on sterilised
food, or on cooked food such as the flesh of seals and
penguins. As they had no green food nor fresh fruit, the
only raw food that they ate was a little cheese. Living
under these conditions, all the members of the expedition
enjoyed good health, and there was no case of digestive
disturbance in the whole period of sixteen months.
It is obvious that abstaining from raw food, and so
reducing largely the entrance of new microbes, by no
means causes the disappearance of the intestinal flora
already existing. We must reckon with that and with
the evil that it does by weakening the higher cells of the
tissues. As the part of the flora that does most damage
consists of microbes which cause putrefaction of the con-
tents of the intestine and harmful fermentations, particu-
larly butyric fermentation, it is against these that our
efforts must be directed.
Long before the science of bacteriology was in exist-
ence, men had turned their attention to methods of pre-
venting putrefaction. Food, especially if it be kept in a
warm place or in a moist atmosphere, soon begins to
putrefy and to become unpleasant to the taste and danger-
ous to the health. Everyone has known cases of poison-
ing from putrid flesh or other food material. Foa, 1 the
explorer of Central Africa, has related that once, when
they were starving, he and his men came on the putrefying
body of an elephant. The negroes rushed to lay hold of
the carrion, but Foa tried to dissuade them, explaining
that to eat flesh in such a state was as bad as taking
poison. All did not listen to him, and three negroes, who'
had taken pieces of the body, swallowed them before they
had been properly cooked. All three died in a few days,
1 Du Cap au lac Nyassa, Paris, 1897, pp. 291-294.
M 2
164 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
with the neck and throat swollen, the tongue almost para-
lysed, and the abdomen inflated.
In another case, sausages made of putrid horse flesh
caused an epidemic at Rohrsdorf, in Prussia, in I885. 1
About forty people fell ill after having eaten the sausages,
which, according to witnesses, were green in colour, smelt
badly, and had a revolting appearance. One person died,
whilst the others recovered after cholera-like symptoms.
It is true that all putrefying food does not produce the
same effect. MM. Tissier and Martelly 2 found no diges-
tive trouble after having eaten food that was quite putrid.
Everyone knows that the Chinese prepare a dish particu-
larly pleasant to gourmets by allowing eggs to putrefy.
Some decaying cheeses are harmful to the health, but
others can be eaten with impunity. The reason of this
is that whilst putrefying food may contain microbes and
dangerous toxins, it does not contain them in all cases.
On the other hand, we must take into account the different
susceptibilities of people to the harmful action of microbes
and their products. Some can swallow without any evil
result a quantity of microbes which in the case of other
individuals would produce a fatal attack of cholera. Every-
thing depends upon the resistance offered to the microbes
by the invaded organism.
Experiments on animals fed on putrefying food have
also given varied results. Some animals eat it without
any harm resulting, others have attacks of vomiting and
show such a repugnance that it is impossible to continue
the experiment.
Not only flesh and other animal substances, but vege-
tables can undergo putrefaction and fermentation (butyric)
1 Gaffky and Paak, in Arbeiten d. k. Gesundheitsamtes, vol. vi, 1890.
2 Annales de flnstitui Pasteur, 1903.
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 165
which make it dangerous to eat them. Many accidents
have occurred in man as the result of deteriorated pre-
served fruit. Vegetables, preserved in silos to feed cattle,
sometimes go wrong. "If, for instance, rainy days come
after sunny days, so that the uncovered fodder is wetted
again, the resulting ensilage is poor and has an extremely
unpleasant butyric odour, so that the animals turn from it."
Sometimes the fodder grows black in the silo, and acquires a
special smell. "The animals will take it only in the
absence of other food ; their excreta become black, and if
they are kept on such a diet for a time they waste in a
marked manner." 1
In popular practice, the value of acids for preserving
animal and vegetable food and for preventing putrefaction
has long been recognised. Meats of all kinds, fish and
vegetables have been " marinated " with vinegar, as the
acetic acid in that substance, the product of bacteria,
wards off putrefaction. If the materials which it is desired
to preserve give off acids themselves, the addition of
vinegar may be unnecessary. For this reason some animal
products such as milk, or vegetables rich in sugar become
acid spontaneously and so can be preserved. Soured
milk can be made into many kinds of cheese, and these
last for longer or shorter times. Many vegetables can
undergo a natural process of souring, when they "keep"
without difficulty. Thus cabbage becomes " sauer-kraut "
and beetroot and cucumbers pass into an acid state. In
many countries, as for instance in Russia, the use of acidi-
fied vegetables is of great importance in the food-supply
of the populace. Fresh fruit and vegetables cannot be
obtained in the long winters, during which the people con-
1 Cormouls-Houlfcs, Vingt-sept ann&s ^agriculture pratique, Paris,
1899, PP- 57-58.
1 66 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
sume large quantities of cucumbers, melons, apples, and
other fruits which have undergone an acid fermentation
in which lactic acid is the chief product. During summer,
milk, which acidifies readily, is the chief source of acid
materials for consumption. The chief beverage is
"kwass," of which black bread is the main ingredient,
and this passes through not only an alcoholic fermentation,
but an acidifying change in which lactic acid is the most
important product.
Rye bread, the chief food of the populace, is also a
product of fermentations amongst which the lactic acid
fermentation is most important, but in other kinds of bread
also there is a fermentation in which some of the sugar
is transformed to lactic acid.
Soured milk, because of the lactic acid in it, can impede
the putrefaction of meat. In certain countries, accord-
ingly, meat is preserved in acid skimmed milk with the
result that putrefaction is prevented. Lactic acid fermenta-
tion is equally important in the food supply of cattle. It
is the chief agent that, in the process of preserving vege-
tation in silos, hinders putrefaction. Finally, the same
fermentation serves in distilleries to preserve the must from
which alcohol is prepared.
This short review is in itself enough to show the great
importance of lactic fermentation as a means of stopping
putrefaction and butyric fermentation, both of which hinder
the preservation of organic substances and are capable
of exciting disturbances in the organism.
As lactic fermentation serves so well to arrest putrefac-
tion in general, why should it not be used for the same
purpose wiihin the digestive tube?
It is a matter of common knowledge that putrefaction
and butyric fermentation are arrested in the presence of
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 167
sugar. Whereas meat preserved without special care soon
putrefies, milk in exactly the same conditions does not
putrefy, but becomes sour, the reason being that meat is
poor in sugar whereas milk contains a good deal of it.
However, the scientific explanation of this fundamental
fact is difficult. It has been shown conclusively that sugar
itself cannot prevent putrefaction. Milk, for instance, how-
ever rich in sugar it may be, readily putrefies in certain
conditions. Sugar preserves organic matter from putre-
faction only because it can readily undergo lactic fermenta-
tion, and this fermentation is the work of the microbes
described fifty years ago by Pasteur. That great dis-
covery proved the part played by microbes in fermenta-
tion and founded bacteriology, a science equally rich in
theory and in practice.
I need not pause to develop the theme that the anti-
putrescent action of the lactic fermentation depends on the
production of lactic acid by microbes, because I have
explained the matter at length in the tenth chapter of the
" Nature of Man." If the lactic acid be neutralised, the
organic matter soon putrefies, notwithstanding the pre-
sence of the lactic microbes. The most important point
is as to whether lactic fermentation really arrests intestinal
putrefaction. Several sets of observations have been made
upon this matter. Dr. Herter, 1 of New York, injected
directly into the small intestine of a number of dogs
quantities of different microbes. To test the action of
these on intestinal putrefaction, he investigated the sulpho-
conjugate ethers in the urine, as he believed, in accord-
ance with current and well justified opinion, that
these substances are the best proofs of the existence of
putrefaction. He found that whilst the introduction of
1 British Medical Journal, 1897, Dec. 25th, p. 1898.
1 68 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
quantities of Bacillus coli or Bacillus proteus increased the
intestinal putrefaction, lactic bacilli notably lessened it.
Herter found a notable diminution of sulpho-conjugate
ethers in the urine of dogs which had been treated with
the lactic microbes.
The experiments which Dr. M. Cohendy 1 performed
upon himself during a period of nearly six months are
still more interesting.
When Dr. Cohendy had proved that much intestinal
putrefaction occurred during a period of 25 days, in which
he lived on an ordinary mixed diet, he began to take pure
cultures of lactic bacillus, taken from yahourth. In a
period of 74 days, he took quantities varying from 280
to 35 grams of the culture.
Analysis of the urine during the progress of the experi-
ment showed that intestinal putrefaction had notably de-
creased whilst the lactic bacilli were being taken, and that
the diminution persisted seven weeks after the taking of
the bacilli ceased. Dr. Cohendy gives it as the direct
result of his experiment that the introduction of lactic
ferment into the intestine definitely arrests putrefac-
tion. He obtained this result on a diet consisting of 400
grams of soup, 150 of meat, 700 of grain-food, 400 of
green vegetables, 300 of fruits and dessert and a litre of
water. He came to the conclusion that the elimination of
meat from the diet was unnecessary, as the particular kind
of lactic ferment he employed was extremely active in in-
hibiting the proteolytic ferments.
Later experiments made by Dr. Cohendy showed that
the lactic bacillus became so acclimatised in the human
intestine that it was to be found there several weeks after
it had been swallowed.
1 Cotnptes rendus de la Soc. de Biologic, 1906, March i;th.
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 169
Dr. Pochon, assistant to Professor Combe l at Lausanne,
has repeated on himself the experiments of Cohendy. He
took for several weeks milk curdled with pure cultures of
lactic acid microbes and obtained " results that were quite
definite as to intestinal putrefaction." Analysis of his
urine showed that there was a marked diminution of indol
and phenol, substances which are certain indexes of in-
testinal putrefaction.
In addition to such observations on lactic bacilli there
is a good deal of knowledge as to the effect of lactic acid
taken in bulk. The result of the various observations 2
shows that the acid lessens intestinal putrefaction and
lowers the quantity of sulpho-conjugate ethers in the
urine. This fact explains why favourable results follow
the use of lactic acid in many intestinal diseases such as
infantile diarrhoea, tuberculous enteritis and even Asiatic
cholera. The addition of this remedy to practical thera-
peutics is due chiefly to Professor Hayem. It is employed
not only in the treatment of diseases of the digestive
system (dyspepsia, enteritis and colitis), but is indicated
also in diabetes and is used locally in tuberculous ulcera-
tions of the larynx. As quantities up to twelve grams
can be given by the mouth daily, it is plain that the system
is tolerant of this acid. It is either oxidised in the tissues
or excreted with the urine. In the case of a
diabetic woman who had taken 80 grams of lactic acid
in four days, Nencki and Sieber 3 found no traces of it
1 Dr. Combe, L'auto intoxication intestinale, Paris, 1906. This valuable
work contains much useful information on the subject. ,,
2 Grundzach, Zeitschrift fur klinische Medezin, 1893, P- 7 : Schmitz,
Zeitschrift fur physiologiscfte Chemie, 1894, vol. xix, p. 401 ; Singer,
Therapeulische Monatshefte, 1901, p. 441.
J Journal fitrpraktische Chemie, 1882, vol. xxvi, p. 43.
1 7 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
in the urine. On the other hand, Stadelmann 1 found a
notable quantity of the acid in another diabetic patient
who had been taking over four grams daily.
The general interpretation of the benefits gained from
the use of lactic acid ferments is that they depend solely
on the action of the lactic acid which they produce in
preventing the multiplication of the microbes which cause
putrefaction. Recent investigations made by Dr. Belon-
owsky, at the Pasteur Institute, show that a lactic ferment
isolated from yahourth and described as the Bulgarian
bacillus owes its antiseptic powers not only to lactic acid
but to another substance which it secretes. Dr. Be"lon-
owsky has studied the effects of this bacillus upon mice, by
adding to their previously sterilised food quantities of
this lactic microbe. As control experiments he fed other
mice on food to which lactic acid had been added in
quantities corresponding to the quantity produced by the
Bulgarian bacillus, or which had been mixed with other
kinds of bacilli. Another set of mice were given normal
food without the addition of either microbes or lactic
acid.
Out of these groups of mice, those which had been given
the Bulgarian bacillus thrived best and had most progeny.
Their droppings showed fewest microbes, particularly
microbes of putrefaction.
The next stage in Dr. Belonowsky's experiments was
to feed mice not with living quantities of the Bulgarian
bacillus, but with cultures which had been sterilised by heat
(i2o-i4o Fahr.). These mice lived as well as those to
which living cultures had been supplied, and notably better
than those supplied with pure lactic acid. It is evident
therefore that there is some other product of this
1 Atchiv.furexperimentelle Pathologic, 1883, vol. xvii, p. 442.
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 171
bacillus which favours life by preventing intestinal
putrefaction.
Dr. Belonowsky showed, moreover, that the Bulgarian
bacillus cures a special intestinal disease known as mouse
typhus.
The experiments which I have described show that in-
testinal putrefaction is to be combated not by lactic acid
itself, but by the introduction into the organism of cultures
of the lactic bacilli. The latter become acclimatised in
the human digestive tube as they find there the sugary
material required for their subsistence, and by producing
disinfecting bodies benefit the organism which supports
them.
From time immemorial human beings have absorbed
quantities of lactic microbes by consuming in the uncooked
condition substances such as soured milk, kephir, sauer-
kraut, or salted cucumbers which have undergone lactic
fermentation. By these means they have unknowingly
lessened the evil consequences of intestinal putrefaction.
In the Bible soured milk is frequently spoken of. When
Abraham entertained the three angels he set before them
soured milk and sweet milk and the calf which he had
dressed (Genesis xviii. 8). In his fifth book, Moses
enumerates amongst the food which Jehovah had given
his people to eat " Soured milk of kine and goat's milk,
with fat of lambs and rams of the breed of Bashan, and
goats with the fat of kidneys" (Deut. xxxii. I4). 1
A food known as " Leben raib," which is a soured milk,
prepared from the milk of buffaloes, kine or goats, has
1 In the English authorised version as in the translation of Oster-
wald the word " butter " is used in place of " soured milk." Professor
Metchnikoff follows the translation given by Ebstein in his work on
the Medicine of the Old Testament.
1 72 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
been used in Egypt from the remotest antiquity. A similar
preparation known as "yahourth" is familiar to the
populations of the Balkan Peninsula. The natives of
Algiers make a kind of " leben " not identical with the
Egyptian form.
Soured milk is consumed in great quantities in Russia
in two forms, " prostokwacha," which is raw milk spon-
taneously coagulated and soured, and " varenetz," which
is boiled milk soured with a yeast.
The chief food of many natives of tropical Africa con-
sists of soured milk. The staple diet of the Mpeseni is
" a curdled milk, almost solidified." " Meat is eaten only
on ceremonial occasions." According to Foa, a tribe of
the Nyassa-Tanganyika plateau, like the Zulus, take milk
only in the form of a raw cheese mixed with salt and
pepper.
Dr. Lima of Mossamedes, in West Africa, has told me
that the natives of many regions south of Angola live
almost entirely on milk. They employ the cream as an
ointment for the skin, whilst the milk, soured and curdled,
is their staple food. M. Nogueira reported the same cir-
cumstances nearly fifty years ago after his journey in the
province of Angola.
Just as cheeses vary in different countries, so curdled
milk varies slightly according to the nature of the flora
of microbes. Taking all the soured milks that are pro-
duced by natural processes, it may be said that the greater
number of them contain not only microbes that produce
lactic acid, but also yeasts that cause alcoholic fermenta-
tions. Kephir, which is prepared from the milk of kine,
and koumiss, which is a product of mares' milk, are
notably alcoholic. Koumiss is the well-known national
beverage of the Kirghises, Tartars and Kulmucks, nomads
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 173
of Asiatic Russia who are famous horse breeders, whilst
kephir is the native drink of the mountaineers of the
Caucasus, the Ossetes, and some other tribes.
It has been supposed that the chief merit of kephir was
that it was more easy to digest than milk, as some of its
casein is dissolved in the process of fermentation. Kephir,
in fact, was supposed to be partly digested milk. This
view has not been confirmed. Professor Hayem thinks
that the good effects of kephir are due to the presence of
lactic acid which replaces the acid of the stomach and
has an antiseptic effect. The experiments of M. Rovighi,
which I spoke of in The Nature of Man, have confirmed
the latter fact, which now may be taken as certain. The
action of kephir in preventing intestinal putrefaction de-
pends on the lactic acid bacilli which it contains.
Kephir, although in some cases certainly beneficial,
cannot be recommended for the prolonged use necessary if
intestinal putrefaction is to be overcome. It is produced
by combined lactic and alcoholic fermentations, and as it
contains up to one per cent, of alcohol, its use as a food
for years would involve the absorption of considerable
quantities of alcohol. The yeasts which produce it can be
acclimatised in the human digestive tract, in which, how-
ever, they are harmful, as they are favourable to the germs
of infectious diseases such as the bacillus of typhoid fever,
and the vibrio of Asiatic cholera.
Kephir has also the disadvantage that its flora varies
considerably and is not well known. There has been little
success in producing it by pure cultures as would be
necessary were it to be brought into general use. When
it is prepared from a dried remnant there is the risk of
stray microbes being included, and these may bring about
pernicious fermentations. Professor Hayem prohibits its
174 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
use in the case of persons in whom food is retained for
long in the stomach. " When it is retained in the stomach,
kephir goes on fermenting, and there are developed in the
contents butyric and acetic acids which aggravate the diges-
tive disturbances." l
As it is the lactic and not the alcoholic fermentation on
which the valuable properties of kephir depend, it is
correct to replace it by soured milk that contains either no
alcohol or merely the smallest traces of it.
The fact that so many races make soured milk and use
it copiously is an excellent testimony to its usefulness.
M. Nogueira has written to me to say how much he was
astonished, on revisiting after a long period of absence
the district of Mossamedes, to find the natives so well pre-
served and displaying so few traces of senility. Dr. Lima
has stated that amongst the natives of the region south
of Angola "many individuals of extraordinary longevity
are to be found." 1 Although they are thin and withered,
these old people are very active and can make long
journeys.
Mr. Wales, a lawyer at Binghampton, U.S.A., has been
so good as to make me acquainted with some extremely
interesting facts taken from a work by James Riley which
is now a bibliographical rarity. 2 In the narrative of a ship-
wreck of the vessel on which he made a voyage in 1815,
James Riley states that the wandering Arabs of the desert
live almost wholly on the milk of camels, fresh or soured.
1 Presse mtdicale, 1904, p. 619.
* "An authentic narrative of the loss of the American brig Commerce
wrecked on the western coast of Africa in the month of August, 1815,
with an account of the sufferings of the surviving officers and crew,
who were enslaved by the wandering Arabs on the African desert or
Zaharah ; and observations historical, geographical, etc." by James
Riley. Hartford, S. Andrus and Son, 1854.
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 175
On this diet they enjoy excellent health, display great
vigour and reach advanced ages. Riley estimated that
some of the old men must have lived for two to three
hundred years. No doubt these figures are much too high,
but it is probable that the Arabs Riley encountered lived
really unusually long.
Mr. Wales has examined Riley's work critically, and
is of the opinion that that author was a well-informed,
sagacious and conscientious observer.
M. Grigoroff, a Bulgarian student at Geneva, has been
surprised by the number of centenarians to be found in
Bulgaria, a region in which yahourth, a soured milk, is
the stable food. Some of the centenarians, described by
M. Chemin in his memoir, lived chiefly on a milk diet.
Marie Priou, for example, who died in the Haute-Garonne
in 1838 at the age of 158 years, had lived for the last ten
years of her life entirely on cheese and goat's milk (op. cit.
p. 100). Ambroise Jantet, a labourer of Verdun, who died
in 1751 at the age of in years, "ate nothing but unleav-
ened bread and drank nothing but skimmed milk " (p.
! 33) Nicole Marc, who died aged 1 10 years, at the chateau
of Colemberg (Pas-de-Calais), a hunch-back and cripple,
" lived only on bread and milk-food. It was only towards
the end of her life and after much persuasion that she took
a little wine " (Chemin, p. 139).
I owe to the kindness of M. Simine, an engineer in
the Caucasus, the following communication, taken from
the newspaper Tiflissky Listok, Oct. 8th, 1904. " In the
village of Sba, in the district of Gori, there is an old Ossete
woman, Thense Abalva, whose age is supposed to be
about 1 80 years (?). This woman is still quite capable
and looks after her household duties and sews. Although
she is bent, she walks firmly enough. Thense has never
176 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
taken alcoholic liquors. She rises early in the morning,
and her chief food is barley bread and butter milk, taken
after the churning of the cream. Butter milk is a liquid
containing very many lactic microbes.
Mrs. Jenny Read, an American, has written to me that
her father, eighty-four years old, " owes his health to the
curdled milk which he has taken for the last 40 years."
Curdled milk and the other products of milk to which
I have referred are the work of the lactic microbes which
produce lactic acid at the expense of milk sugar. As many
different kinds of soured milk have been consumed on a
vast scale and have proved to be useful, it might be
supposed that any of them is suitable for regular con-
sumption with the object of preventing intestinal putrefac-
tion.
From the point of view of flavour I find that soured
milk, prepared from raw milk, is much the more agree-
able. However, when a food is to be selected for con-
sumption during a long period of time, we must keep
hygiene strictly in view. It is certain, therefore, that the
Russian " prostokwacha, " as well as any other soured
raw milk, must be rejected. Raw milk contains a large
assortment of microbes, and frequently some of these are
harmful. The bacillus of bovine tuberculosis, as well
as other pernicious microbes, may be found in it. Accord-
ing to the investigations of Heim l the vibrios of Asiatic
cholera, when placed in raw milk, survive even when the
milk has become quite soured. In similar conditions the
bacillus of typhoid fever remains alive for 35 days and dies
only after it has been kept for 48 days in completely soured
milk.
1 Arbeiten a. d. k. Gesundheitsamte, 1889, vol. v, pp. 297-304.
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 177
As raw milk nearly always contains traces of faecal
matter from the cow, it sometimes happens that pernicious
microbes are introduced from that source, and remain alive
notwithstanding the acid coagulation of the milk. The
lactic microbes certainly prevent the multiplication of other
microbes, as, for instance, those of putrefaction, but are
incapable of destroying them. Moreover, raw milk often
contains fungi (yeasts, torulas, and oi'dia) the presence of
which is favourable to the development of such pernicious
microbes as the cholera vibrio and the bacillus of typhoid
fever.
Prolonged consumption of raw milk increases the risk
of introducing dangerous microbes into the organism, and
this possibility drives me to recommend soured milk pre-
pared after heating. Theoretically, it would be best to
sterilise the milk completely so that all the contained
microbes would be destroyed. This, however, requires
heating the milk to a temperature of from 226 to 248
Fahr., by which it acquires an unpleasant flavour. On
the other hand, the pasteurising of milk at a temperature
of about 140 Fahr. is not sufficient to get rid entirely of
the bacilli of tuberculosis and the spores of the butyric
bacilli. We have, therefore, to fall back on a middle
course, and be content with boiling the milk for several
minutes. By so doing we certainly kill the tubercle bacilli
and the spores of some of the butyric bacilli, 1 there being
left only some butyric spores and the spores of Bacillus
subtilis, to destroy which a much higher temperature is
necessary.
As some kinds of soured milk, such as " varenetz,"
41 yahourth," " leben," etc., are prepared from boiled milk,
1 See Grasberger and Schattenfroh, Archii'.fiir Hygiene, 1902, rol
xlii, p. 246.
1 78 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
it might be supposed that they fulfil the conditions neces-
sary for prolonged use. A closer examination, however,
makes us reject them.
Boiled milk, to make it undergo the lactic fermentation
properly, must have added to it a prepared ferment. What
is necessary is not merely rennet, as was formerly sup-
posed, but a number of organised ferments, that is to say,
microbes. In the preparation of these soured milks, a
leaven is employed, one of the names of which is " Maya,"'
and which contains not only lactic microbes, but several
others. MM. Rist and Khoury l have come to the conclu-
sion that the Egyptian "leben" contained a flora com-
posed of five species, three of which are bacteria and two
yeasts. The bacteria produce lactic acid and the yeasts
alcohol. Although the result is that " leben " is a nearly
solid substance, whilst kephir is a liquid, the two are closely
similar. In both cases we have to do witfi coincident lactic
.and alcoholic fermentations, and my remarks regarding
kephir apply equally well to the Egyptian " leben."
Through the agency of Prof. Massol of Geneva, I have
obtained a specimen of the Bulgarian " yahourth." Work-
ing with his pupil, M. Grigoroff, M. Massol 2 has isolated
several microbes from this milk, amongst these being a
very active lactic bacillus. The same soured milk has been
studied in my laboratory by Drs. M. Cohendy 3 and
Michelson. They found in it a very powerful lactic fer-
ment, which has been named the Bulgarian bacillus. This
was the microbe employed in the experiments of M. Belon-
owsky, to which I have already referred. More recently, it
has been carefully investigated from the chemical point of
1 Annales de tlnstitut Pasteur, 1902, p. 65.
- Revue mMicale de la Suisse romande, 1905, p. 716.
8 Comptes rendus de la Soc. Biologique, March i;th, 1906.
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 179
view by MM. G. Bertrand and Weisweiler l at the Pasteur
Institute. It proved to be an extremely active producer of
lactic acid, supplying 25 grammes per litre of milk. The
other acids which this bacillus produces, such as succinic
and acetic acids, are formed only in very small quantities
(about 50 centigrams a litre). Formic acid is produced
only in traces. On the other hand, the Bulgarian bacillus
forms neither alcohol nor acetone, two frequent products of
bacterial fermentation. The bacillus also differs from other
lactic ferments inasmuch as it has no action on albumin-
oids (casein, etc.), nor on fats. All these qualities make
the Bulgarian bacillus much the most useful of the microbes
which can be acclimatised in the digestive tube for the
purpose of arresting putrefactions and pernicious fermenta-
tions, such as the butyric fermentation.
As in all the known soured milks (yahourth, leben, pro-
stokwacha, kephir, and koumiss) the lactic bacilli are asso-
ciated with a rich flora in which pernicious microbes may
be met (such as the red torula, a microbe which predis-
poses to cholera and typhoid fever, which I found in the
leaven of yahourth, bought in Paris), it is necessary to
work out a method by which good curdled milk can be
produced with the aid of pure cultures of the lactic microbes.
It was the obvious course to begin with the Bulgarian
bacillus, as that is known to be the best producer of lactic
acid. It coagulates milk rapidly, giving it a strongly acid
flavour, but it often also gives a disagreeable taste of tallow.
It is true that after it has been kept for a long time in the
laboratory in the form of pure cultures in sterilised milk,
the bacillus loses to a large extent its power of saponifying
fats, the taste of the curdled milk befng then more agree-
able. If necessary, therefore, soured milk prepiared exclu-
1 Annales de PInstitut Pasteur, 1906, p. 977.
N 2
180 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
sively with the Bulgarian bacillus can be used. -In practice,
however, it is useful to associate with it another lactic
microbe, known as the paralactic bacillus, as the latter,
although producing less lactic acid than the Bulgarian
bacillus, does not break up the fats and gives the curdled
milk a very pleasant flavour.
As it is undesirable to absorb too much fatty matter, it
is necessary to prepare curdled milk for regular use from
skimmed milk. After the milk has been boiled and
rapidly cooled, pure cultures of the lactic microbes are
sown in it, in sufficient quantities to prevent the germina-
tion of spores already in the milk and not destroyed in
the process of boiling. The fermentation lasts a number
of hours, varying according to the temperature, and finally
produces a sour curdled milk, pleasant to the taste and
active in preventing intestinal putrefaction. This milk,
taken daily in quantities of from 300 to 500 cubic centi-
metres, controls the action of the intestine, and stimulates
the kidneys favourably. 1 It can therefore be recommended
in many cases of disorder of the digestive apparatus, of
the kidneys, and in several skin diseases.
The Bulgarian bacillus taken from yahourth or from
soured milk, prepared from pure cultures of lactic microbes,
can live in warm temperatures, and, as has been shown
by Dr. Cohendy, is able to take its place in the intestinal
flora of man.
Soured milk, prepared according to the receipt which
I have given, has been analysed by M. Fouard, an assist-
ant at the Pasteur Institute. When it was ready to be taken,
M. Fouard found in it about 10 grammes of lactic acid per
litre. Moreover, a large proportion (nearly 38 per cent.)
of the casein had been rendered soluble during the fer-
1 Soured milk can be taken at any time of the day, with or in between
meals.
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 181
mentation, which shows that its albuminous matter is pre-
pared for digestion much as in kephir. Of the phosphate
of lime (which is the chief mineral substance of milk) 68 per
cent, was rendered soluble during the fermentation. These
facts all confirm the utility of the soured milk prepared
from pure cultures of lactic bacteria.
Those persons who, from some reason or other, cannot
take milk, may swallow the bacilli in a pure culture with-
out milk. However, as the microbes need sugar to produce
lactic acid, it is necessary to take with them a certain
qjuantity of sweet food (jam, sweet-meats, and especially
beetroot).
The Bulgarian bacillus produces lactic acid not only
from milk sugar, but also from many other sugars, for in-
stance, cane sugar, maltose, levuloseand especially glucose.
Cultures of the bacillus can be made not only in milk,
but in vegetable broths, or broths of animal peptone to
which sugar has been added. The cultures can be taken
in a dry form (powders or tabloids), or in the liquid in
which the bacilli had themselves been developed.
A reader who has little knowledge of such matters may
be surprised by my recommendation to absorb large quan-
tities of microbes, as the general belief is that microbes
are all harmful. This belief, however, is erroneous. There
are many useful microbes, amongst which the lactic bacilli
have an honourable place. Moreover, the attempt has
already been made to cure certain diseases by the adminis-
tration of cultures of bacteria. M. Brudzinsky 1 has used
cultures of lactic microbes in certain intestinal diseases of
infants, whilst Dr. Tissier 2 has used them in similar
affections of infants and adults.
1 Jahrbuch fur Kindertieilkunde, N. F. 12 Ergansungsheft, 1900.
2 Annales de tlnstitut Pasteur, 1905, p. 295 ; Tribune medicate, Feb.
24th, 1906.
1 82 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
From the general point of view of this book, the course
recommended consists of the absorption either of soured
milk prepared by a group of lactic bacteria, or of pure
cultures of the Bulgarian bacillus, but in each case taking
at the same time a certain quantity of milk sugar or
saccharose.
For more than eight years I took, as a regular part
of my diet, soured milk at first prepared from boiled milk,
inoculated with a lactic leaven. Since then, I have changed
the method of preparation and have adopted finally the pure
cultures which I have been describing. I am very well
pleased with the result, and I think that my experiment has
gone on long enough to justify my view. Several of my
friends, some of whom suffered from maladies of the intes-
tine or kidneys, have followed my example, and have been
well satisfied. I think, therefore, that lactic bacteria can
render a great service in the fight against intestinal putre-
faction .
If it be true that our precocious and unhappy old age is
due to poisoning of the tissues (the greater part of the
poison coming from the large intestine inhabited by num-
berless microbes), it is c4ear that agents which arrest intes-
tinal putrefaction must at the same time postpone and
ameliorate old age. This theoretical view is confirmed by
the collection of facts regarding races which live chiefly on
soured milk, and amongst which great ages are common.
However, in a question so important, the theory must be
tested by direct observations. For this purpose the numer-
ous infirmaries for old people should be taken advantage of,
and systematic investigations should be made on the rela-
tion of intestinal microbes to precocious old age, and on
the influence of diets which prevent intestinal putrefaction
in prolonging life and maintaining the forces of the body.
It can onlv be in the future, near or remote, that we shall
LACTIC ACID AND PUTREFACTION 183
obtain exact information upon what is one of the chief
problems of humanity.
In the meantime, those who wish to preserve their intel-
ligence as long as possible and to make their cycle of life
as complete and as normal as is possible under present
conditions, must depend on general sobriety and on habits
conforming to the rules of rational hygiene.
PART V
PSYCHICAL RUDIMENTS IN MAN
I
RUDIMENTARY ORGANS IN MAN
Reply to critics who deny the simian origin of man
Actual existence of rudimentary organs Reductions in the
structure of the organs of sense in man Atrophy of Jacob-
son 's organ and of the Harderian gland in the human race
SEVERAL critics of The Nature of Man have protested
against my theory of the simian origin of man. Some of
these found my arguments unsatisfactory and unconvinc-
ing. Others have attacked generally my suggestion that
some anthropoid had been suddenly transformed to a
primitive human being.
It is true that so long as we have little palaeontolo-
gical evidence as to the actual descent of man, we cannot
discuss the subject without the aid of hypotheses. I think,
however, that recent additions to knowledge confirm the
theory of the descent of man in a way that ought to influ-
ence the most resolute opponents. I have in mind chiefly
the arguments supplied by the embryology of anthropoid
apes, and by the investigation of their blood. None the
less, there are still many authors who maintain their oppo-
sition. One of my critics, Dr. Jousset, 1 enumerates certain
differences in the structure of the skeleton in man and apes,
and concludes that these radically separate man from apes.
1 La nature hitmaine et la philosophic optimiste, Paris, 1904.
RUDIMENTARY ORGANS IN MAN 185
No one has ever doubted that man was not identical in
structure with the anthropoid apes, or that he differs from
th^m in several characters of the skeleton and of many
other organs. The differences, however, do not justify any
radical separation of the two. The unusual length of arm,
upon which my opponents throw so much weight, is in
harmony with the mode of life of apes, as these climb on
trees and walk on all four limbs. The difference between
apes and Europeans in length of arm is certainly consider-
able, but is much less in the case of some lower races, such
as the Veddahs. In the Akkas of Central Africa, the arms
are so long that the hands nearly reach the knees. The
foetus of Europeans also shows an unusual length of arm,
probably an ancestral feature. It is only after birth that
the arms become relatively shorter.
All the other characters different in man and the apes,
are equally secondary. On the other hand, just as apes
differ amongst themselves, so also, the different races show
differences often strongly marked. M. Michaelis, 1 in a
comparative study of the muscular systems of monkeys,
has made known many details of the musculature in the
orang-outan and the chimpanzee, and it appears from his
investigations that, although there are some differences
between these two apes, they are both closely similar to man .
There are many variations in the muscular structure of
man, and these find parallels in the muscles of apes. This
is also the case with other abnormalities of structure, some
of which resemble the condition in mammals much lower
than apes. An example of this is the presence of addi-
tional pairs of nipples, arranged symmetrically on the sides
of the chest and occasionally found in human beings. A
similar abnormality has been found in some monkeys, and
1 Archiv.f. Ana/, u. Physiol., Anatom. Abtheil, 1903, p. 205.
1 86 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the best explanation of such an occurrence is that monkeys,
like man, are descended from mammals which possessed
several pairs of mammary glands.
The large number of abnormalities and rudimentary
organs which may be found in man affords important
evidence in favour of the descent of man from lower
animals. Some authors, however, have tried to dispute
this view and even deny the existence of rudimentary
organs. M. Brettes, 1 amongst my opponents, has brought
together most facts upon this matter, with the object of
proving that such organs fulfil some function indispensable
to the body and bear witness to the existence of a general
plan of organisation. My opponent, however, confines
himself to general propositions, laying much stress on a
law of "the subordination of organs" without proving
that rudimentary organs have an actual function. In The
Nature of Man I remarked on the uselessness of the
wisdom teeth, which are not cut until long after childhood
and which are useless in mastication. In many human
beings these teeth never cut through the gum, and their
absence is no disadvantage. This is a typical case of a
rudimentary organ. To maintain the contrary it would be
necessary to prove that the wisdom teeth fulfil an indis-
pensable function and that their absence was in some way
harmful to the organ ism. No one has been able to show this.
The mammary glands in males are another case of rudi-
mentary organs. The function of these, of course, is well
known in females, but it is only in the rarest cases that
they are active in males.
The organs of sense supply many cases of rudimentary
structures. Animals which live in caves, in the dark, do
not discern objects by sight, and in these cases the eyes are
1 Dunivers et la vie, p. 592.
RUDIMENTARY ORGANS IN MAN 187
rudimentary. It is quite impossible to deny the existence
of rudimentary organs. They are extremely important
guides to us in our investigation of the past history of the
human race. The comparative study of the organs which
are rudimentary in man and more or less well developed in
lower animals is of fundamental importance in the problem
of our origin.
The higher apes, or anthropoids, display reduction in
some parts of the organs of sense. The organ of smell,
for instance, is much less developed in them than in many
other animals. Man has inherited the imperfect condition
of this organ, and his sense of smell is much less developed
than that of mammals which are lower in the scale of life.
Man, however, because of his intelligence, has been able
to tame domestic animals, such as dogs, ferrets, and pigs,
and to make use of their acute sense of smell for tracking
game or obtaining edible plants. The imperfect condition
of the sense of smell in man in other cases is well re-
placed by his mental powers. He no longer recognises the
approach of an enemy by the sense of smell, in order that
he may take flight, because he has better means of defence
than those of animals. It is not surprising, therefore, that
the olfactory apparatus of man is much reduced as com-
pared with that of lower mammals. In apes and man the
nasal region of the head is much smaller than in their
mammalian ancestors, and in the deep-lying parts of the
system there are corresponding differences. Most
mammals, for instance, and the dog in particular, have four
turbinal bones, the purpose of which is to increase the
surface of the mucous membrane of the nose, whilst in
man there are only three, one of which is rudimentary.
The olfactory apparatus in most mammals contains a
well-developed portion known as the organ of Jacobson,
1 88 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the probable function of which is to appreciate the flavour
of food in the mouth. In man, this organ is in a rudi-
mentary condition and cannot fulfil its function, as it is
devoid of its proper nerve. This remnant, now useless,
gives us information as to the evolution of the organ of
smell in man. In the human foetus, Jacobson's organ is
not only better developed than in adult man, but it is also
provided with a stout nerve trunk, which disappears to-
wards the end of embryonic life. The organ, however,
cannot perform any olfactory function. The human foetus,
moreover, possesses five turbinals which later on become
reduced to three, and of these only two develop completely.
The history of the evolution of the organ of smell, as it
has been made out by comparative anatomy and embry-
ology, links this apparatus in man with the corresponding
organs of other mammals by means of these useless rudi-
ments, which, however, are important evidence in scien-
tific theory.
The auditory apparatus also has become reduced in man.
Many animals, in the struggle for existence, require a very
acute sense of hearing, more so than man or some of the
most intelligent mammals. We have all seen how horses
raise their ears to hear better when there is the slightest
sound near them. Monkeys and man have lost this power,
and man sometimes tries to supply the defect by artificial
means. When a lecturer, for instance, is not speaking
sufficiently loud some of the audience put their hands to
their ears, making a kind of trumpet which serves to catch
the sound. The human external ear is supplied with
muscles, but in most cases these are too feeble to move it.
In very rare cases persons can move their ears, the muscles
inserted to the shell in most of us being mere rudiments of
those that existed in our ancestors.
RUDIMENTARY ORGANS IN MAN 189
In the organ of sight, the little fold in the inner angle
of the eye, known as the semilunar fold, is of special
interest. This membrane is a useless vestige of a struc-
ture much better developed in lower mammals. In the
dog it is present as a small third eyelid, supported by a
special cartilage provided with a secreting gland, known
as the Harderian gland. In birds, reptiles and frogs, the
corresponding structures are much better developed.
Everyone has seen the delicate membrane which, in the
case of a bird, may shoot out from the inner angle of the
eye and cover the whole of the exposed part of the eyeball
(nictitating membrane). In these animals, the eye is pro-
tected by this third lid, which has its own muscles. As
in the dog, this third eyelid of birds and lower vertebrates
is generally provided with a large Harderian gland, which
produces a liquid secretion like tears.
In most monkeys, this apparatus is much reduced.
Many of them have still a small Harderian gland and a
weak third eyelid. In man, as I have already said, there
are only vestiges of these organs, the gland being almost
atrophied and the third eyelid represented only by an in-
significant crescentic fold. In the lower races the fold
sometimes contains a small cartilage. Giacomini found it
twelve times in sixteen negroes, whilst in 548 white people
it was found only in three cases.
The interpretation of these facts is not doubtful. This
little fold is the last vestige in use of an organ which was
useful only in our remote ancestors.
The organs of reproduction in the human race also show
a number of rudiments. There remain even traces of &
hermaphrodite condition, a very low degree of organisa-
tion, going back to extremely remote ancestors. The
evidence given by the very large number of abnormalities
1 9 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
that are found fn these organs makes it clear that, in the
long period of the evolution of the human race, they have
been subjected to a series of modifications. Thus, for in-
stance, there is occasionally present in women a form of
uterus resembling that of the lower mammals, or even the
double uterus of marsupials.
The evolution of man has been dominated by the great
development of the brain and of the intelligence, and man,
accordingly, has lost many organs and functions which
were of use in his more or less remote ancestors.
II
HUMAN TRAITS OF CHARACTER INHERITED FROM APES
The mental character of anthropoid apes Their muscular
strength Their expression of fear-^The awakening of latent
instincts of man under the influence of fear
THE facts of which I have given a re'sume' serve to show
that evolution always leaves definite traces indicating its
successive stages in the form of rudiments. It is probable,
therefore, that the pre-human mental functions or psycho-
physiological qualities, which have so long a history
behind them, have also left more or less appreciable traces.
These, however, must be more difficult to find than rudi-
mentary organs which can be made visible by dissection.
If we turn first to the animals most nearly related to
man, we find that the living anthropoid apes show in the
clearest way their close relationship with the human race,
and suggest that their kinship with our remoter ancestors
must be even greater.
The anthropoid apes alive to-day are animals inhabit-
ing chiefly virgin forests, and feeding on fruits and shoots,
although they do not despise eggs or even little birds. To
satisfy their wants, they climb with the greatest ease,.
Orang-outans and chimpanzees climb slowly and carefully,
whilst -gibbons show a greater agility and more perfect
acrobatic power. They may be seen throwing themselves
1 92 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
from branch to branch across spaces of forty feet with
the greatest precision. They play at the top of very tall
trees, hardly grasping the branches through which they
pass, making leaps of from twelve to eighteen feet for
hours together with little apparent exertion.
To give an idea of the dexterity and swiftness of
gibbons, Martin took the case of a female which he ob-
served in captivity. One time she hurled herself from a
perch across a space at least twelve feet wide, against a win-
dow which one would have thought would have been
immediately broken. To the great surprise of the spec-
tators it was not broken. The gibbon seized with her hands
the narrow board between the panes, and then in an instant
twisted herself round and jumped back to the cage she had
left, performing this manoeuvre with great strength and
the most marvellous precision.
The muscular force implied in the above narrative is
possessed by all the anthropoid apes. Battel, an English
sailor who gave the first description of the gorilla in the
beginning of the i7th century, stated that the strength of
that animal was so great that ten men could hardly master
an adult specimen. The other anthropoids, although not so
strong as the gorilla, nevertheless display surprising force.
Edouard, the young male chimpanzee which I used in
my experiments on syphilis, struggled so much at the
least touch that it took four men to master him. I had to
give up allowing him to leave his cage because there was
no way of getting him back to it. Even quite young
chimpanzees, females not yet two years old, cannot be
handled easily. Although they are very friendly, my
specimens used to resist with all their strength when it was
necessary to put them back in their cages for the night.
Two men had much ado to shut them up.
CHARACTER INHERITED FROM APES 193
Notwithstanding this great muscular force, the anthro-
poid apes are cowardly. They have no idea of their
strength, but fly from the approach of the slightest imagined
danger. My young chimpanzees, although their teeth and
muscles were already formidable weapons, showed the
greatest fear when I put with them animals even so weak
and harmless as guinea-pigs, pigeons and rabbits. Mice
frightened them very much at first, and it took them a con-
siderable time before they got over their fear of so insig-
nificant an enemy. When living in a state of nature the
anthropoid apes scarcely ever assume the offensive.
" Though possessed of immense strength," wrote Huxley, 1
" it is rare for the Orang to attempt to defend itself, espe-
cially when attacked with fire-arms. On such occasions
he endeavours to hide himself, or to escape along the top-
most branches of the trees, breaking off and throwing down
the boughs as he goes." Savage 2 wrote of chimpanzees
that "they do not appear ever to act on the offensive, and
seldom, if ever really, on the defensive." When a female
was surprised on a tree with her young ones "her first
impulse was to descend with great rapidity and make off
into the thicket." 3
The gorilla, the strongest and most ferocious of the
apes, has sometimes been observed to take the offensive.
Savage, quoted by Huxley, said that " they are exceedingly
ferocious, and always offensive in their habits, never run-
ning from man, as does the chimpanzee. The females
and young, at the first cry, quickly disappear. He (the
male) then approaches the enemy in great fury, pouring
out his horrid cries in quick succession." 4 Only males"
1 Huxley, Man's Place in Nature. Collected Essays, vol. vii, p. 54.
2 Ibid., p. 60. 3 Ibid., p. 62. 4 Ibid., p. 67.
i 9 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
take the offensive, nor can this be of frequent occurrence,
as one of the most recent observers, Koppenfels, 1 states
that "the gorilla never attacks man spontaneously; he
tries to avoid him, and, as a rule, takes to flight as soon as
he sees a man, uttering peculiar guttural cries."
Which of these characters are preserved in the human
race ? Man is naturally feebler and less of a gymnast than
the great apes, but his disposition is cowardly. One of
the earliest signs of mental activity in an infant is the fear
of surrounding circumstances. The smallest change in its
balance or its being put in a bath cause it to show signs of
real terror. Later on, it is alarmed when it sees any kind
of animal, exactly in the fashion of a young chimpanzee.
The most harmless spider is enough to frighten it.
Although mental culture subdues fear to a large extent,
fear reveals itself more or less strongly from time to time,
and it is on such occasions that we may find in the human
being psychological relics of his ancestors. An analysis
of fear is of special interest.
The first result of the emotion of fear is flight. Con-
sciousness of danger sets our limbs in motion, and our
instinctive desire to escape displays itself even when flight
is more dangerous than what we wish to avoid. At the
first alarm of fire in a public building, people rush towards
the exits and in so doing often perish from their wish to
escape. Even in the extreme of terror, the desire of flight
is one of the earliest impulses. Mosso, a well-known
Italian physiologist, in a monograph on fear, relates that
when a Calabrian brigand was sentenced to death " he
uttered a sharp cry, heart-rending and terrible, looked
around him as if he were eagerly seeking for something,
and then stepped backwards as if to fly, and threw himself
1 Mngaux, Les Manmmiferes, p. 24.
CHARACTER INHERITED FROM APES 195
against the wall of the court, writhing, with arms out-
stretched, scratching at the wall as if he were trying to
break through it."
Although in such a case it was futile and often is
harmful, the instinct of flight from danger is inherited
from ancestors from a time when it served to save life.
Attempts to escape are not the only signs of fear. There
is often a trembling fit which would make flight impos-
sible. In Mosso's case of the Calabrian brigand, "after
his struggles, cries and contortions, he fell on the ground
in a motionless heap, like a wet rag ; he became pale and
trembled more than I have seen any other person tremble ;
his muscles seemed changed into a soft and quivering
jelly." This condition of trembling inertia is another
legacy from animals. Quivering of the muscles often
manifests itself in terrified animals. Darwin 1 wrote of it,
"trembling is of no service, often of much disservice,
and cannot at first have been acquired through the will,
and then rendered habitual in association with any
emotion." The phenomenon seemed to him obscure and
difficult to explain, a view shared by Mosso. The trem-
bling of the musculature of the body is a generalised and
exaggerated form of the movements of the cutaneous
muscles in the condition known popularly as "goose-
skin." The latter, however, is a relic of an adaptation
useful to some animals. The hedgehog rarely takes to
flight at the approach of danger, but stands still, and using
strongly developed muscles, rolls itself into a ball. In
birds and many mammals, the muscles of the skin cause
erection of the feathers or hairs. These movements often
are performed during fright, and according to Darwin,
1 Darwin, Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, 1873,
p. 67.
O 2
196 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
serve not only to warm the skin, but sometimes to make
the animal appear larger and more terrifying to enemies.
Fear and cold alike cause contraction of the superficial
blood-vessels, and, in man, excite the contraction of the
minute rudimentary muscles inserted to the roots of the
hairs. " Goose-skin " is caused by the contraction of these
muscles, the condition being a functional rudiment, no
longer serving to warm the skin nor to make the body
appear larger. In a few exceptional cases, "goose-skin"
can be produced voluntarily. In the normal condition,
the rudimentary cutaneous muscles of man are immobile,
and it requires some special stimulation to set them in
action.
Fear, which is occasionally able to excite the contrac-
tion of the involuntary muscles, also stimulates other
muscles against the will. Under the influence of emotions
that powerfully affect the nervous system, and particularly
under that of fear, contractions of the bladder and intes-
tines may be so violent that it is impossible to prevent the
voiding of their conte'nts. Accidents of this kind are not
infrequent in the case of youthful candidates at examina-
tions. Mosso relates of a friend, a volunteer in the war
of 1866, that he was seized with terror during a battle and
that the utmost efforts of his will failed to make his body
endure the terrible spectacle.
The involuntary action of the bladder and intestines
during fear is a legacy from animals. The phenomenon is
common in dogs and monkeys. Chimpanzees, when laid
hold of, discharge their urine and faeces. At Madeira I
had an unusually cowardly Cercopithecus monkey which
when at all alarmed discharged the contents of the rectum.
Quite possibly such a mechanism was useful for the pre-
servation of the individual. The emission of various kinds
of excretions is of use in the struggle for existence. In
CHARACTER INHERITED FROM APES 197
that way the fox drives the badger from its earth and takes
possession of it, whilst polecats and skunks defend them-
selves against more powerful carnivorous animals by dis-
charging on them foetid secretions.
Instinctive fear is therefore a very powerful stimulant,
awakening functions which are rudimentary and almost
completely extinct. Sometimes it sets in operation
mechanisms which have long been paralysed. Pausanias
gives an example of a dumb young man who recovered
his speech when he was terrified by seeing a lion. Hero-
dotus relates that the son of Crcesus, who was dumb, on
seeing a Persian about to kill his father, cried out : " You
must not kill Crcesus," and from that time onwards was
able to talk. These ancient narratives have been con-
firmed by many modern observations. A woman, for
instance, who had been dumb for several years, on seeing
a fire, was terrified and cried out suddenly " Fire ! " after
which her speech was restored. Such are cases of the
awakening of a function which has been arrested only
for several years. But fear can bring into activity other
mechanisms which have been inactive from time im-
memorial.
Many different kinds of animals can swim instinctively.
This is true in the case of most birds and mammals.
There are some species which show a repugnance to water,
but none the less swim well enough if they are thrown
into it. Cats shun water as much as possible, but, none the
less, can swim quite easily. Historians relate that Han-
nibal had great difficulty in getting his elephants to cross
the Rhone. Some females were ferried across first, upon '
which the other elephants threw themselves into the water
to pursue them and swam across the river without any
difficulty (Lentheric, Le Rhone, 1892, p. 81).
The lower monkeys can swim without being taught, but
198 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the anthropoid apes have lost this power, and man also is
without it. M. Volz 1 states that the different species of
gibbons which live in Sumatra are separated by rivers.
Their inability to swim makes these a complete barrier.
It is probable that the lower races, in this respect, are
better endowed than we are. It is said that in the case of
negroes, children run to the sea or to rivers almost as soon
as they leave the cradle, and learn to swim almost as
quickly as to walk. 2 In the case of white people, many
find it very difficult to learn to swim, and it is at least
certain that swimming is not instinctive as in the case of
our animal ancestors. Christmann, 3 the author of a treatise
on swimming, states that the reason of man is a worse
guide than the infallible instinct of the animal. Fear is
able to stifle reason and to allow the instinct to come into
play. It is known that children or adults may be taught to
swim by throwing them into the water. Under the influence
of fear, the instinctive mechanism inherited from animals
aw r akens, and man soon becomes a swimmer. There are
some teachers of swimming who use this method success-
fully. I have myself known an individual who learnt the
art in that way, and M. Troubat, librarian at the Inter-
national Library, has informed me that one of his friends,
a journalist who died at Noyon several years ago, bathed
in the Seine one evening at Neuilly when he could not swim.
Unexpectedly finding himself beyond his depth, a sudden
movement of fear saved him. Since then, he said, he
knew how to swim.
Just as there are cases in which terror provokes flight,
1 Biologisckes Centralblatt, 1904, p. 475.
2 J. de Fontenelle, Nouveau manuel complet des nageurs, Paris, 1837,
p. 2.
3 La natation et les bains, Paris, 1887.
CHARACTER INHERITED FROM APES 199
and others in which it causes an arrest of motion, so also
fear may do a disservice to a swimmer. Those who
employ fear as a means of teaching to swim, know that
they must intervene if there is real danger. It is true, none
the less, that up to a certain point fear can awaken func-
tions which have been atrophied for numberless genera-
tions, and that we can learn from it something as to the
evolution of the human race.
Ill
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA AS MENTAL RELICS
Fear as the primary cause of hysteria Natural somnam-
bulism Doubling of personality Some examples of som-
nambulists Analogy between somnambulism and the life
of anthropoid apes The psychology of crowds Importance
of the investigation of hysteria for the problem of the origin
of man
THE study of fear is interesting in other respects than those
with which I have been dealing. It is also a primary cause
of the obscure and complicated phenomena of hysteria.
Thus, for instance, amongst twenty-two hysterical women
observed by Georget 1 the primary causes were : terror, 13
cases ; extreme grief, 7 cases ; extreme annoyance, one case.
A patient of M. Pitres, of Bordeaux, first exhibited hysteria
after being extremely terrified. A man with a tame bear
had come to the village. The patient went to see the per-
formance and elbowed her way through the crowd until
she got to the front row. The bear, whilst dancing, passed
so close that its cold muzzle touched the cheek of the young
girl. Marie for that was the patient's name was terri-
fied. She ran quickly home, and almost on her arrival
fell on her bed in an attack of convulsion and extreme
delirium. Since then the attacks have been repeated many
times, and the delirium associated with them always turns
upon Ihe terror caused by the bear touching her.
1 Quoted by M. Pitres in Lffons diniqites sur FhystMe, 1891, vol. i.
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA 201
A hysterical woman at the Salpe'triere is haunted by
terrifying dreams. She thinks someone is trying to murder
her, or to cut her throat, or that she is falling into water,
and she keeps crying for help. 1
Some of the most curious phases of hysteria are the para-
doxical and extraordinary cases of so-called natural som-
nambulism, in which the patients, whilst asleep, perform
all sorts of acts of which they remember nothing in their
waking hours. Cases of duplication of personality are
also known, in which the patients live in two different
states without, in one of these, having the slightest remem-
brance of what takes place in the other. One of the most
curious observations was that of the somnambulist who
became enceinte whilst in her second state. In her first,
or normal condition, she was ignorant of the reason of her
physical changes, although in the second state she knew
about it quite well and spoke freely of it (Pitres, .op. cit. II,
215).
In the state of natural somnambulism the patients gene-
rally reproduce the normal acts of their daily life which
they have acquired the habit of performing unconsciously.
Artisans devote themselves to their manual work, semp-
stresses begin to sew, maid servants brush shoes or clothes,
lay the table and so forth. Educated persons devote them-
selves to intellectual work to which they are accustomed.
Clergymen have been known to compose their sermons in
the somnambulistic condition, and to read them over to
correct mistakes in style or in spelling.
However, besides somnambulists who during slumber
simply repeat the usual acts of their life, there are others
who do special things to which they are unaccustomed.
1 Bourneville et Regnard, Iconographie photographique de la Sal-
pttriere, 1879-1880, vol. iii, p. 50.
202 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
It is these cases which are most interesting from my point
of view. I shall take one case which has been specially
well reported. A hysterical patient, a girl of 24 years of
age, was admitted as an in-patient to the hospital Laennec.
One Sunday, she got up about one o'clock in the morning.
The night watchman, who was alarmed, went for the night
doctor, who witnessed the following scene. "The patient
went to the staircase leading to the nurses' quarters, then
suddenly turned round and walked towards the wash-
house. The door of that being closed, she then groped
for a time and turned towards the women's dormitory in
which she had formerly slept. She went up to the top of
the house where this dormitory was, and when she got on
the landing, opened a window leading to the roof, went
out of the window, walked along the gutter, under the
horrified eyes of the nurse who followed her and who did
not dare to speak to her, went in again by another window
and went down the stairs." " It was at this moment that
I saw her," said the night doctor; " she was walking noise-
lessly, her gait was automatic, her arms hanging by her
sides, a little bent, the head erect and fixed, her hair
disordered, her eyes wide open; she seemed like some
strange apparition." 1 This is obviously the case of
a hysterical subject, who in a normal condition was
not accustomed to climb upon roofs and walk along the
gutters.
Another observation, reported by Charcot, related to a
young man, seventeen years old, the son of a large manu-
facturer, and of good address. Tired out by working for
his final examination, he had gone to bed early. Some
time later he rose from the bed in his college dormitory,
1 Stephanie Feinkind, Du somnambulisme dit naturel, Paris, 1893,
P-55-
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA 203
went out by a window, and without accident climbed on
the roof and took a long and dangerous walk along the
gutters. He was awakened before any accident occurred
(Feinkind, p. 70).
A case observed by Dr. Mesnet and M. Mottet was still
more interesting. A lady thirty years old and extremely
hysterical got out of bed in the night, "dressed herself,
completed her toilet without help, removed the furniture
in her way without stumbling against it. She was in-
different and idle by day, but strenuous at night in perform-
ing the most varied acts. I have seen her walking about
in her rooms, opening doors, going down to the garden,
leaping on seats with the utmost agility, running about,
in fact doing all these things much better than in her
waking hours, in which she got about only slowly and with
aid" (Feinkind, p. 84).
Horst has related an extraordinary incident which took
place in the sixteenth century. "A soldier walked in his
sleep to a window, and with the help of a rope climbed a
high tower, secured a jackdaw's nest with its young birds,
and regained his bed, where he remained asleep until the
morning." 1 Unfortunately there are not sufficiently de-
tailed facts regarding this incident, and for fully described
cases we must return to modern times. Dr. Guinon has
related one case in ample detail. A man thirty-four years of
age, by occupation an interpreter, was taken into hospital
for hysterical attacks. " One night soon after he came under
the care of the physicians, this patient, towards one o'clock
in the morning, suddenly arose from bed, threw open a
window and jumped across the sill into the courtyard of
the hospital. The attendants on duty ran after him, and
saw him hurrying away, undressed and carrying a pillow
1 Dictionnaire des sciences medicates, 1821, vol. lii, p. 119.
204 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
in his arms. He traversed a series of gardens and walks,
with the topography of which he was unacquainted, climbed
a ladder and got on the roof of the hydrotherapeutic estab-
lishment, up and down which he proceeded to run with the
greatest agility. Sometimes he stopped in his flight and
rocked the pillow he was carrying, kissing and soothing it
as if it were a child. Then he retraced the route he had
taken." On being questioned next morning, he had not
the faintest remembrance of his nocturnal exploit. "A
similar fit came on him five or six times "(Feinkind, p. 108).
The same patient, "after having turned over in bed
several times, seized a pillow and held it to his breast. He
then got out of bed, and, in his nightgown, ran through the
dormitory to a door leading to the lavatories. He opened
the door, readily but with violence, and entered one of the
closets. Then, still holding the pillow against his chest
with one arm, by a gymnastic feat both difficult and dan-
gerous, yet which he performed with the utmost precision,
using his feet and the free arm, he got hold of the edge of
the frame of an open window, through which he swung
himself to the sill, alighting on both feet, after which,
preserving the pillow carefully from contact or shocks, he
jumped to the ground (the infirmary ward was on
the ground floor). He then ran quickly to the opposite
corner of the courtyard, passing the whole length of the
great building at full speed, holding the pillow carefully.
By a path which led round the building, he reached a
corner where there was a tower supporting a great water-
tank. A kind of metallic ladder, placed almost vertically
and with rounded steps, led up the side of the tower to
a sort of observation-landing which at one point was adja-
cent to the edge of the roof of the bath-house.
" The patient set himself to climb this ladder without any
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA 205
hesitation, holding on by his free hand and placing his
naked feet on the rounded steps with extreme precision.
When he reached the nearest point to the roof of the bath-
house he leapt upon that, and at a running pace climbed
the zinc roof to the crest, looking round him from time
to time to see if his imaginary pursuers were near. He
ran along the crest which was so narrow that his feet
had to be placed alternately on either side on the slopes
of the steep-pitched roof, a performance so dangerous that
none of the officials would follow him, and which none the
less he performed with complete assurance and without a
single slip.
' ' When he reached the middle of the building he sat down
on .the crest of the roof, leaning against a ventilating
chimney. He then took the pillow which he had been
carrying carefully, placed it on his knees with a corner
against his shoulder, and began to rock it as if it were a
child, crooning to it, stroking it with his hand or with his
cheek that he pressed gently against the corner. From
time to time his eyebrows contracted and his looks hard-
ened, and he gazed around him as if he were being pursued
or watched, then gave a growl of rage, and took to flight
again, carrying the pillow on his dangerous path. All the
time he kept speaking, but we could not hear what he
said. He saw nothing that was not in his dream; he did
not understand when his name was called aloud; but he
could hear, for at the slightest sound near him he rushed
off again as if his pursuers were upon him. This episode
lasted about two hours, during which he had climbed over
all the roofs in the vicinity, defying our pursuit of him ",.
(Feinkind, pp. 106-112).
I could give other similar cases, but I think that I have
shown sufficiently that man, when in the condition of
206 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
natural somnambulism, exhibits qualities that he does not
possess in the normal state, becoming strong, adroit, and
a good gymnast, like his anthropoid ancestors. The close
resemblance between the manoeuvres of Martin's gibbon,
which I described earlier in this chapter, and the dangerous
exploits of some sleep walkers is most striking.
The impulses to climb on roofs and poles, to run along
in rain gutters, to climb a tower to take a bird's nest, are
characteristic examples of the instinctive actions of climb-
ing animals, like the anthropoid apes. Dr. Earth l defines
somnambulism as " a dream with exaltation of the memory
and automatic action of the nervous centres, without volun-
tary and conscious control." "The striking exaltation of
the memory is the dominating condition. The extreme
exactness of the memory of places displayed by the som-
nambulist makes us understand how he performs his noc-
turnal wanderings, doing almost without the aid of his
senses numberless deeds of which he would be practically
incapable in a waking condition." However, as such a
patient performs new acts which he has never accom-
plished before in his own individual life, we must suppose
that the exaltation of memory includes extremely ancient
facts, dating perhaps from the pre-human period. Man has
inherited from his ancestors a number of mechanisms of
the brain, the activity of which is inhibited by restraints
which have been developed later. Just as man possesses
mammary glands which under ordinary conditions cannot
secrete milk, so also, in his brain, there are contained
groups of cells which are inactive in the normal condition,
but, also, just as in some exceptional cases man and the
males of several species of mammals are able to give milk,
so also in abnormal conditions the atrophied mechanisms
of other nervous centres begin to act.
1 Du Sommeil non nature I, Paris, 1886.
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA 207
The secretion of milk by males is a return to an extremely
ancient condition in which both sexes were able to nourish
the young ; so, also, the gymnastic feats and the extraor-
dinary strength of somnambulists are a return to a normal
condition much less remote from us than lactation in males.
It is curious to find that, in some cases, natural som-
nambulism is associated with power to move the shell of
the ear. I know two brothers, who, when they were young,
used to walk in their sleep in the most typical way. One
of them, a chemist, used to climb on a high cupboard, or
simply walk about in the room. The other brother, a
sailor, in a fit of somnambulism, climbed to the top mast
of a sailing ship. These brothers, who were somnambu-
lists, had the cutaneous muscles extremely well developed
and were able to move their ears voluntarily.
In this case the abnormality was hereditary in the family,
and the two daughters of one of the brothers were also
somnambulistic and had control over the muscles of the
ears. Here, then, is a case of the simultaneous recurrence
of two characters of our ancestors : mobility of the ear and
agility in gymnastic feats. M. Barth characterises the
somnambulist as "a living automaton in whom conscious
will is for the time being destroyed." According to him,
the somnambulist "acts at the suggestion of circum-
stances, and what seem most extraordinary in what he does
are in reality instinctive reactions." This description
agrees well with my view that in natural somnambulism
the instincts of our pre-human ancestors are awakened, in-
stincts which under normal conditions are latent and rudi-
mentary.
Sometimes, under the stimulus of fear, the instinctive
mechanism of swimming is awakened in man. It would be
extremely interesting to know if a similar occurrence took
place in somnambulists. I have been unable to find in
208 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
literature any sufficient facts upon this subject. I can
quote only one case, and that with all reserve, which was
published in the article " Somnambulism " in the Diction-
naire des Sciences Medicales. "It is related that a som-
nambulist who took to swimming during one of his fits
was called by his name several times, and became so
frightened when he awoke that he was drowned." It
would be extremely interesting to collect more numerous
facts on the instincts shown by somnambulists.
I have given a good deal of attention to natural som-
nambulism with the idea that I should find in it traits
recalling those of the life of anthropoid apes. I think that
the extremely varied phenomena of hysteria could supply
us with other facts, useful in investigating the psycho-
physiological history of man. Perhaps some of the facts
of so-called "lucidity" which are well established could
be explained as the awakening of special sensations atro-
phied in the human race, but present in animals. It is
known that in vertebrate anatomy organs are found which
have the structures of organs of sense, but which are
absent or quite rudimentary in the human body. On the
other hand, it is known that animals perceive some pheno-
mena of the surrounding world, for the perception of which
man has no organs of sense. Fish, for instance, appreciate
gradations in the depth of water, birds and mammals have
a sense of orientation and can anticipate changes in the
weather more exactly than our meteorological science.
When under the influence of hysteria, man may possibly
be able to recover these senses of our remote ancestors,
and to know things of which he is ignorant in the normal
condition.
Hysteria is common to man and animals. Amongst the
numerous chimpanzees which I have owned, several have
shown signs of hysteria. Some, when they were in the
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA 209
slightest degree annoyed, lay on the ground, screaming
terribly, and rolling about like children in a fit of passion.
One young chimpanzee used to pull out its hair when it
was in a fit of temper. The view that hysteria is a relapse
to the condition of our animal ancestors is supported by
the conception of hysterical phenomena, suggested by Dr.
Babinsky. 1 This well-known neurologist thinks that "the
phenomena of hysteria have two special characters, the one
being that they can be reproduced by suggestion in some
cases with the most complete fidelity, and the other that
they can disappear under the sole influence of persuasion."
M. Babinsky thinks that "the hysteric patient is neither
unconscious nor completely conscious, but is in a state of
special consciousness." In my opinion the latter con-
dition corresponds to the state of mind of our more or
less remote ancestors.
Occasionally a man, under some sudden impulse, falls
into a condition of extreme violence, and, being unable to
control himself, commits acts of which he repents imme-
diately afterwards. It is the custom to say that at such
times the brute has awakened in the man. This is more
than a metaphor. CProbably some nervous mechanism
from a remote ancestor has come into action, at the call
of some stimulation.) As our anthropoid ancestors and
primitive man lived in tribes, it is natural that when men
are grouped together, certain savage instincts should
awaken. In this connection it is interesting to study the
psychology of crowds. When man is surrounded by a
great many of his fellows, he becomes particularly respon-
sive to suggestion. This condition is* characterised as
follows by M. G. Le Bon, 2 the author of a study on the
1 Conference faite d la Socittt de PInternat, June 28th, 1906.
2 The Crowd: a Study of the Popular Mind. English translation,
London, 1896.
P
210 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
psychology of crowds : " The most careful observations
seem to prove that an individual immerged for some length
of time in a crowd in action soon finds himself either in
consequence of the magnetic influence given out by the
crowd, or from some other cause of which we are ignorant
in a special state, which much resembles the state of
fascination in which the hypnotised individual finds him-
self in the hands of the hypnotiser. The activity of the
brain being paralysed in the case of the hypnotised subject,
the latter becomes the slave of all the unconscious activi-
ties of his spinal cord, which the hypnotiser directs at will.
The conscious personality has entirely vanished ; will and
discernment are lost. All feelings and thoughts are bent
in the direction determined by the hypnotiser" (p. 11).
Man, under the influence of the crowd, gets into a condi-
tion like that of a hysterical patient and displays a state of
mind identical with that of our ancestors. "Moreover, by
the mere fact that he forms part of an organised crowd, a
man descends several rungs in the ladder of civilisation.
Isolated, he may be a cultivated individual ; in a crowd, he
is a barbarian that is, a creature acting by instinct"
(P- 13).
It is quite natural to find relics of our prehistoric past
in all kinds of hysterical phenomena. We could reach
extremely interesting facts regarding the tribal and sexual
life of apes, if we tried to compare with them the pheno-
mena of human hysteria. The. passionate gestures which
are characteristic of some hysterical cases could probably
be explained in this way quite simply, and the wild cries
uttered by patienfe in acute hysteria would be similarly
explicable.
I think that just as anatomists seek for points of com-
parison between man and animals, as palaeontologists make
SOMNAMBULISM AND HYSTERIA 211
excavations to discover the buried remains of creatures
intermediate between man and apes, so also, psychologists
and doctors should investigate the rudimentary psycho-
physical functions with the object of building up the history
of the evolution of our psychical life. It cannot be doubted
that in this branch of science new arguments would be
found to support the already well founded theory of the
simian origin of the human race.
P 2
PART VI
SOME POINTS IN THE HISTORY OF
SOCIAL ANIMALS
I
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE RACE
Problem of the species in the human race Loss of indivi-
duality in the associations of lower animals Myxomycetes
and Siphonophora Individuality in Ascidians Progress
in the development of the individual living in a society
IN the following pages I shall try to reply to the criticism
on The Nature of Man that in that book I only considered
the individual without thinking of the interests of
society or of the race. I have been reproached for having
lost sight of the truth that in the general course of evolu-
tion the interests of the individual must yield to the higher
interests of the community. It was asserted, in fact, that
by advising orthobiosis, that is to say, the most complete
cycle of human life, ending in extreme old age, I was
suggesting something to the detriment of humanity as a
whole.
This objection rests on a misunderstanding which it will
be interesting to clear up. I think that the complete
development of the individual not only would not injure the
community but would be of great advantage to it. More-
over, we must not lose sight of the fact that the individual
has rights which must not be ignored.
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE RACE 213
In the attack on my theory many facts were brought
forward which show that in the animal and vegetable
kingdoms the individual is always sacrificed to the advan-
tage of the race. There is no doubt as to this, and in the
course of this book I have given exact facts bearing on it.
I instanced plants such as the Agave and some Crypto-
gams which die as soon as they have reproduced; I have
also spoken of the small female round worms (Nematodd)
which are brutally torn in pieces and devoured by their
progeny. It would be difficult to find better cases of the
sacrifice of the individual to the species. The rule, how-
ever, does not apply to man, who, in this respect, stands
in a special position.
Since the arrival of man, several species of animals have
disappeared from the earth. Man has played a large part
in the destruction of the Moa (Aepyornis) of Madagascar,
the largest member of the class of birds. He destroyed
the Dodo of the Island of Mauritius and Steller's sea cow
(Rhytina stelleri), a harmless relative of the Manatee, from
the shores of the Aleutian Archipelago. Man is about
to cause the extinction of several species of harmful carni-
vorous animals, such as the wolf and the bear, and possibly
it will not be long before automobiles have replaced the
horse, which would then become extremely rare. How-
ever, although he has destroyed so many other species,
man has taken good care of himself. The progress already
made by civilisation has considerably reduced our mor-
tality. Every year, a large number of young infants are
kept alive by the aid of hygiene and medicine. The de-
crease of war and of assassination has also played a part
in maintaining the race. The position which man has
acquired in the world makes it more likely that what we
have to fear is too great an increase of population, and
2i 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
although the theory of Malthus has not been verified in
all its details, it is still true that man could multiply on
the face of the earth too abundantly. It is already clear
that almost in the proportion that humanity stops the
effusion of its blood in war, it tends to limit the propaga-
tion of the race.
As the future of the species seems to be safe, it is natural
to consider in the first place that of the individual. In this
respect the facts of general biology are of special interest.
Man is not the only social animal on the earth. Long
before his appearance other living beings existed in or-
ganised societies. The splendid colonies of Siphonophora
float on the surface of the seas, whilst in the ocean depths
there are societies of corals of extraordinary variability,
whilst again, on land, many kinds of insects live in highly
organised societies.
This social life has been developed without external
assistance, and without any code to regulate the conduct
of the individuals united for a common purpose.
It will be interesting to give a slight survey of the funda-
mental principles of such societies ; I intend to draw special
attention to one of the essential points in the societies
of animals, hoping to elucidate the relations between the
individuals and society.
In the organisation of human society the most difficult
points are the extent to which the society may encroach on
the individual and the degree to which the individual may
preserve his rights and his independence. Disputes on
these have been interminable, and I do not propose to
discuss the theories according to which an individual must
be sacrificed for the good of the community to which he
belongs. I shall limit myself to reviewing the fate of the
individuals in societies of beings much inferior to man.
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE RACE 215
There are examples of societies composed of many in-
dividuals, even amongst living things on the borderland
between the animal and vegetable kingdoms.
There may be found in woods, on dead leaves or on
decaying timber, minute plants resembling tiny mush-
rooms. These are Myxomycetes, and the visible portions
are minute sacs filled with microscopical rounded bodies,
known as spores. When one of the spores is moistened,
there emerges a minute organism with a mobile appendage
FIG. 21. Isolated individuals
of a Myxomycete.
(After Zopff.)
a, spore ; b /, escape of the
zoospores.
Fio. 22. Myxomycete indi-
viduals united to form a plas-
modium.
(After Zopff.)
by which it can be impelled through water. A drop of
water on a leaf or on a fragment of timber may be filled
with numbers of these tiny swimming bodies (Fig. 21).
Their free life as individuals, however, is of brief duration.
When they come into contact, their bodies fuse, forming
a gelatinous mass which may be quite large (Fig. 22),
This mass is called a plasmodium, and is composed of a
living substance which can move slowly over leaves and
which exhibits streaming movements in the interior, so
2,1 6 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
that the whole resembles in some respects the lava from a
volcano.
The plasmodia may be regarded as societies in the con-
stitution of which the individuality of the members has
been completely sacrificed. The ideal of those philoso-
phers who have urged that man should renounce his indi-
viduality and merge himself in the community has been
realised in the fullest way at the lower end of the scale
of life, at an epoch inconceivably remote from the appear-
ance of the human race.
Amongst animals, even the most lowly, there are no
societies in which the members are sacrificed so completely
to the whole. Individuality is always preserved to a
greater or lesser extent. Consider the polyps, colonies of
which form reefs in the sea and may even become
islands. These creatures live in aggregations, the mem-
bers of which are incapable of living an independent
life. They are united by living substance and resemble
double monsters, such as Doodica and Radica, who were
so much talked of some years ago when M. Doyen oper-
ated upon them. The peritoneal cavities of these twins
were in free communication, and the blood-vessels were
united so that the blood of the one passed freely into the
body of the other. In another double monster, the two
Tscheck girls, Rosa and Josepha, the intestinal tracts
communicate, both leading to a common rectum. In
these, who are still alive, the peritoneum is joined and
there is a single urethra.
In the case of the coral polyps, the fusion of the indivi-
duals of the colony is nearly always much more complete.
Each individual has its own mouth and stomach, whilst the
other organs cannot be assigned to individuals but must
be regarded as common to the whole.
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE RACE 217
In the swimming polyps or Siphonophora, the loss of
individuality is still more remarkable. These graceful and
transparent creatures, sometimes large in size, live in the
sea and may appear on its surface in great numbers. They
possess many whip-like filaments provided with tentacles,
swimming bells and stomachs. There can be no doubt as
to their colonial nature (Fig. 23), but it is difficult to
decide as to whether each piece of the
colony, each swimming bell, stomach
and so forth, is to be regarded as an
individual or an organ, different zoo-
logists having taken different views
on the question. One interpretation
is that colonial life has brought with
it such modifications that of each in-
dividual there remains only a single
organ. Some individuals have been
reduced to simple stomachs, attached
to the central stem, whilst others have
lost all organs except that of locomo-
tion which has become one of the
swimming bells of the colony. Other
zoologists, and I myself amongst them,
think that the Siphonophora are
colonies of organs in which there has
been as yet practically no development of individuality.
A living chain of Siphonophora is simply a number of
organs such as stomachs, tentacles, swimming bells and so
forth, united on a common stem. I need not discuss the
disputed point further, for the only matter pertinent to rrty
argument is that in the Siphonophora the loss of individu-
ality, the sacrifice of the parts to the whole, is not so great
as in the Myxomycetes.
FIG. 23. One of the
Siphonophora.
(After Chun.)
pn, pneumatic chamber ;
clh, swimming bells;
stl, stolon.
218
THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
In support of my view, I must recall the small forms of
Siphonophora known as Eudoxia. These are detached
pieces of the common trunk which swim freely in the
sea and have a remarkable structure (Fig. 24). Their
mobility is due to a bell provided with strong muscular
fibres. The bell is a portion of an individual which pos-
sesses organs of reproduction but which is devoid of the
means to capture or digest food. These two functions
are performed by a second individual which is closely
united with the first. The nutrient individual has a long
FIG. 24. Eudoxia.
(After Chun.)
FlG. 25. Botryllus
colonies.
o, mouth ; A, common
cloaca.
tentacle by which the prey is captured, and a capacious
stomach in which it is digested. The products of diges-
tion pass by channels into the reproductive individual,
carrying as it were a ready-made blood. Eudoxia in fact
is a double being composed of an individual incapable of
locomotion or of reproduction, but adapted for prehension
and digestion, and of a second individual which can repro-
duce and which is mobile. Eudoxia is an association
resembling that of the blind man and the paralytic, in
Florian's fable.
Advance in the organisation of social animals is plainly
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE RACE 219
incompatible with complete loss of individuality, and this
becomes the more apparent the higher we reach in the scale
of life. In the social Ascidians, each member retains all
the organs necessary to life. Animals of the genus Botryllus
(Fig. 25), perhaps the most interesting of these Ascidians,
occur in the form of circular colonies. The individuals
which compose the colony are grouped radially around a
common centre which is occupied by the cloaca. Each in-
dividual has its own mouth and digestive tube, but the
latter opens into a cloaca, common to all the individuals,
by which the excreta are voided. There is, in fact, a single
anus, as in the case of Rosa and Josepha which I have just
mentioned.
II
INSECT SOCIETIES
Social life of insect*? Development and preservation of
individuality in colonies of insects Division of labour and
sacrifice of individuality in some insects
HITHERTO I have dealt with associations of animals the
members of which are linked by an actual material bond.
In the insect world there are many cases of highly devel-
oped colonies. But the organisation of insects is high, and
is incompatible with the existence of actual physical con-
nection between the members of the society.
In early stages of the development of the social instinct in
bees, fully formed and similar individuals join together
with the object of securing the safety of their individual
lives. Sometimes they act together to drive away a
common enemy, sometimes, as in winter, they cling in a
mass to maintain their temperature. In such primitive
societies, the young are not reared in common. It is only
in much more highly developed colonies, such as those of
some bees and wasps, and of ants and termites, that the
chief object of the common action is care of the progeny.
Such an extreme development of the colony is attained only
by sacrificing the individuality of the members. There is
a far-reaching division of labour, so that the queens, for
instance, are mere machines for laying eggs. In hive-bees
INSECT SOCIETIES 221
the queen can no longer judge of what is good for the
colony, her intellectual functions being degenerate. She
is enclosed in her cell and supported by the workers, who
see in her the future of the race. In times of want the
worker-bees sacrifice their own lives and give the queen the
last remnants of the food-supply so that she survives them.
The males are incomplete individuals and are tolerated only
so long as they are required, after which the workers kill
them remorselessly.
The workers, which take such pains for the well-being of
the hive, are incomplete individuals. Their brains are well
developed and they are well equipped with organs for
making wax and collecting food, but their reproductive
organs are reduced to mere vestiges incapable of fulfilling
their functions.
Here then is a case of loss of individual characters in-
creasing with the perfection of the colony. Amongst ants
and termites, the social life of which arose quite indepen-
dently of that of bees, the same course of events has been
repeated. High intelligence and skill are confined to the
workers, in which the reproductive organs are atrophied.
The soldiers have powerful jaws used in defence of the
camp, but they, too, are sexually incomplete. The females
and males, in which the reproductive organs have attained
huge proportions so that the bodies are little more than
sacs containing the sexual elements, have no intelligence
and very little skill.
An extremely curious specialisation, consisting in the
formation of honey-bearfng workers, occurs in some Mexi-
can ants. Some of the workers of these races absorb so
much honey that their bodies become swollen honey-bags.
The limbs can no longer support the expanded body, and
the insects, reduced to immobility, do not quit the burrows.
222 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Normal life has become impossible for these individuals,
who soon die for the good of the community. When the
normal workers or the sexual individuals are hungry, they
approach the honey-bearers and take honey from their
mouths. The honey-bearers have be-
J
come no more than animated cupboards
(Fig< 26) *
The termites belong to quite another
FIG. 26. A Honey- class of the group Insecta, but in their
/AA \>\ \ case a similar sacrifice of the individual
(Alter rJrenm.)
to the state is practised. The females
become transformed to shapeless bags of eggs. They
cannot move, but remain secluded in the recesses of the
"ant "-hill, where they lay as many as 80,000 eggs a day.
The soldiers have become provided with jaws so enormous
that these unsexed insects can perform no function other
than defence of the colony.
The partial reduction of individuality in social insects
never goes so far as in the cases of the lower animals I have
described. It may be stated as a general rule that increase
in the perfection of organisation brings with it a more pr
less complete preservation of individuality in the members
of a community.
I shall now examine to what extent this law can be
applied in the case of man.
Ill
SOCIETY AND THE INDIVIDUAL IN THE HUMAN RACE
Human societies Differentiation in the human race
Learned women Habits of a bee, Halictus quadricinctus
Collectivist theories Criticisms by Herbert Spencer and
Nietzsche Progress of individuality in the societies of higher
beings
SOCIAL life is for the most part little developed amongst
vertebrate animals. The birds and fishes which live in
communities present no organisation of society even com-
parable with that found amongst insects. There Is little
advance in this respect in the case of mammals, and it is not
until we come to man that highly organised societies are to
be found. Man is the first vertebrate to develop an organ-
ised social life. But, whilst in the insect world, instincts
are of supreme importance in the regulation of the com-
munity, there is little instinctive action in human com-
munities. The consciousness of individuality, or egoism,
is very powerful in human beings, and perhaps for that
reason our ancestors made little progress in the development
of social relations.
Anthropoid apes adhere in little groups or in families
without any true social organisation. Love of the neigh-
bour, or altruism, appears to be a recent and feeble human
acquisition.
Although the organisation of human society is far ad-
224 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
vanced and division of labour very complete, there is no
differentiation of the individuals comparable with what is
found amongst insects. Although in animals so different as
Siphonophora, bees, wasps, and termites the develop-
ment of the community, proceeding along different lines,
has brought into existence non-sexual individuals, there is
no trace of this specialisation amongst human beings.
Certain abnormalities in the condition of the sexual organs
are occasionally found in men and women, but these cannot
be compared with the production of sexless individuals that
has taken place amongst other social creatures. I cannot
accept the view that we are to see something analogous to
the case of worker bees in the prohibition of sexual relations
imposed by some religious systems on a certain number of
individuals. But in any event there is little importance in
this occurrence, which is rapidly becoming rarer.
In recent times, both in Europe and the United States of
America, there has been an active development of a feminin-
ist movement impelling women towards higher education.
Women, no longer content with the avocations of mother
and housewife, have pressed into professions such as law
and medicine. There is a steady increase in the number of
women who study at the Universities, and countries like
Germany, which have tried to exclude women from higher
studies, will soon have to yield before an irresistible pres-
sure.
Can we regard the results of this movement as analogous
to the production of sexless workers which has taken
place amongst social insects? I think not. It is un-
doubtedly true that a certain number of young women, who,
for some reason or other are unlikely to marry, devote them-
selves to scientific study. In these cases, however, celibacy
is the cause, not the result of the increased intellectual
SOCIETY AND THE INDIVIDUAL 225
activity. On the other hand, it must be remembered that
many women students of science eventually marry. In St.
Petersburg, for instance, there were 1,091 women in the
Medical School ; of these 80 were already married and 19
were widows. Of the remaining 992, 436 or 44 per cent,
married during the course of their studies.
Observation of the femininist movement, which has lasted
for more than forty years, shows that in most cases there
is no tendency towards the formation of individuals re-
sembling the infertile worker insects. Most lady doctors
and learned women would like nothing better than to be
the founders of a family. Even the women who have been
most distinguished in the scientific world are no exception
to the rule. In this relation it is very interesting to follow
the details- of the life of Sophie Kowalevsky, one of the
most notable of learned women. In her youth, when she
began to study mathematics, she would not admit that feel-
ings of love had any importance. Later on, however, when
she felt herself growing old, these sentiments awoke in her
to such an extent that on the day when the prize of the
Academy of Sciences was bestowed on her, she wrote to
one of her friends, " I am getting innumerable letters of
congratulation, but by the strange irony of fate, I have
never felt so unhappy."
The cause of this discontent reveals itself in the words
which she addressed to her most intimate woman friend.
"Why is it," she said, "that no one loves me? I could
give more than most women, and while the most ordinary
women are loved, as for me, I am not loved." l
It is, in fact, impossible to regard the celibacy of persons,,
devoted to religion or to scientific studies as the beginning
of a special organisation analogous to that of worker bees.
1 Souvenirs d/enfance de S. Kowalevsky, 1895, pp. 301-311.
Q
226 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
However, it is still probable that in the human race a
special differentiation has been established for the accom-
plishment of different and essential functions.
The organisation of human societies has certainly not fol-
lowed the path by which social insects attained the forma-
tion of sexless individuals. It much more closely re-
sembles what has taken place in some isolated animal types.
A solitary bee, named Halictus quadricinctus (Fig. 27), is
characterised by the fact that the female does not die when
she has laid her last eggs, as generally happens amongst
insects, but remains alive to cherish her offspring. This
final portion of her life does not last long, and the bee can-
not play the prominent part of governess in a society of
insects organised by this specialisation of elderly females.
In the human race the individual life lasts
longer and a division of labour takes place
in the fashion suggested by Halictus quad-
ricinctus.
FIG. 27. Halictus An ordinary woman ceases to be fertile at
between forty and fifty years old, that is to
say, at a time when, according to statistics,
she has still on the average twenty years to live. During
this long period, she can perform an extremely useful
function in society, a function resembling that of the
old mothers of Halictus quadricinctus, and consisting
chiefly in the bringing up and education of the children.
Who does not know the extraordinary devotion of grand-
mothers, and, as a general rule, of old women, who are
extremely useful in bringing up children. And none the
less, it must not be forgotten that, actually, old age begins
too soon, that it is not what it ought to be under normal
conditions, and that human life itself does not last nearly
so long as it ought to do in ideal conditions. We may pre-
SOCIETY AND THE INDIVIDUAL 227
diet that when science occupies the preponderating place in
human society that it ought to have, and when knowledge
of hygiene is more advanced, human life will become much
longer and the part of old people will become much more
important than it is to-day.
The members of human society are not divided into
sexual and neuter individuals as amongst insects, but the
active life of every individual can be divided into two
periods, the first one of productive activity, and the second
of sterility but none the less devoted to work useful to the
community. The essential difference between the two cases
may be reduced to the contrast that whilst the individuals
of which animal societies are composed are structurally in-
complete, in human societies the individual preserves his
integrity.
We come, then, to the result that the more highly
organised a social being may be, so also the more highly
developed is his individuality. It follows that amongst the
theories which seek to control social life, those are the best
which leave a field sufficiently wide and free for the develop-
ment of individual initiative. The ideal which has been so
often advocated and according to which the individual is to
be sacrificed as completely as possible to society, cannot be
regarded as in harmony with the general law of organic
associations. Special conditions exist in social life in which
great sacrifices are inevitable, but such an arrangement
cannot be considered as general and permanent. We may
predict that the more human beings succeed in advancing
communal life, the fewer cases there will be in which the
individual has to be sacrificed.
In the hope of subduing the egoism rooted in human
nature, moralists have preached renunciation of individual
happiness and the need of subordinating it to the good of
Q 2
228 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the community. Very often such doctrine has borne little
fruit, but there are cases where it has been embraced with
such ardour that men and, still more, young women have
been led to sacrifice their well-being for what they have
taken to be the common good. However it may involve
self-abnegation, there has been continued insistence on the
duty of sacrificing the individual to the community.
The existing great inequalities in the distribution of
wealth have revived doctrines the object of which is to
redress such injustice. For more than a century, different
forms of socialism have claimed to formulate rules for the
amelioration of mankind. They agree in a verdict
against existing conditions, but follow different paths
in their proposals for the reformation of society. The
varieties of socialism are so numerous that it is difficult
even to define the word. Although collectivist theories
have lost much of their early thoroughness, they are still
far from admitting the just claims of the individuals con-
stituting the society. At socialist assemblies and con-
gresses the resolutions adopted frequently proclaim
aggressively the sacrifice of the rights of the individual.
The members of one socialist party have been seen refusing
the collaboration of newspapers which are not the official
organs of the party, or declining any co-operation with a
government they have proscribed. In strikes organised by
socialists, work is forbidden to men who ardently desire it.
Recently printers have refused to set up newspapers the
opinions of which they did not share, and even doctors
have been known to decline to treat those belonging to
another political party.
It is no new charge against collectivists that they would
encroach too much on individual liberty. They reply that
" in social-democratic society of the future, tyranny and
SOCIETY AND THE INDIVIDUAL 229
oppression will be impossible. The secret of the bond will
reside in a discipline totally different from the inanimate
obedience of the soldier, a discipline depending on a willing
submission of the individual to the group because of the
common object." 1 But such discipline and submission
may go so far that the conscience of the individual is seri-
ously offended. And so amongst the socialists themselves
there has arisen a small group which declines to accept this
submergence of the individual in the whole. This group
is composed of anarchists, who, in the name of liberty and
the individual, attack the property and sometimes the lives
of their opponents.
It appears that there has been a notable evolution of
collectivist theories in the century or more in which the
abolition of human misery has been an accepted problem.
Whilst there was formerly advocated the total abolition of
private property and the establishment of phalansteries for
communal life, at the present time the demand is limited
to the nationalisation of the means of production, leaving
housing and food to be provided by individual property.
Through a publication, of M. Kautsky, one of their best
known representatives, the social democrats have announced
that "the nationalisation of the land does not necessarily
bring with it the abolition of private dwellings. The custom-
ary attachment of the dwelling to agricultural employment
will cease, but there is no reason why the peasants' houses
should become collective property." "Modern socialism
does not exclude individual property in food. One of the
most important, perhaps the most important factor, in mak-
ing human life happy and adding to its pleasures is the
possible attainment of a private house. Collective owner-
1 W. Henberg, Sozialdentokratie und Anarchismus, 1906, p. 17.
2 Le problems agraire, 1905, p. 147.
230 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
ship of the land does not exclude this." It is very difficult
to separate house and garden, especially from the point of
view of considering the pleasures of life. A garden fur-
nishes the opportunity for endless improvements, many of
which cannot be separated from the idea of individual pro-
perty. The concessions which collectivists have been com-
pelled to make show conclusively the importance of private
property.
Notwithstanding such modifications, many voices have
been raised against the prospect of the socialisation of the
means of production and the concomitant limitations of
individual enterprise. The great English philosopher,
Herbert Spencer, 1 against whom narrowness of view or
conservatism could be urged, energetically attacked collec-
tivist doctrines as tending to reduce human individuality to
a dead level. By a series of cogent instances, he showed
the evil results of the best intentioned efforts to equalise
opportunities and to abolish poverty. He foretold that
slavery would be the real outcome if the State interfered too
much in spheres that ought to be left to individual enter-
prise. He believed that the institution of a collectivist State
would bring great dangers.
Nietzsche has attacked socialism with his customary
exaggeration. " Socialism," 2 he wrote, " is the fanatical
younger brother of dying despotism, whose goods he
wishes to inherit ; his efforts are, in the deepest sense of the
word, reactionary. He wishes a wealth of power in the
State greater than despotism ever enjoyed, but he goes
1 "The Coming Slavery" in Man versus the State, 1888, p. 18.
2 Human, too Human. French translation, 1899, pp. 405-407. A
German critic has reproached me for my ignorance of Nietzsche's works.
I have read several of them, but the mixture of genius and madness in
them makes them difficult to use. In this connection Moebius' volume.
Ueber das Pathologische bet Nietzsche (Wiesbaden, 1902), is of interest.
SOCIETY AND THE INDIVIDUAL 231
beyond all the past inasmuch as he strives absolutely to
stifle the individual; for him the individual is a useless
efflorescence of nature to be tamed into a useful organ of
the community." Further, " Socialism at least teaches
brutally and convincingly the danger of concentrating
power in the State, for it is a covert attack on the State
itself. When ks harsh voice raises the war-cry ' Let the
State control as much as possible,' the cry will at first
become louder ; but soon another phrase will grow equally
clamant, ' Let the State control as little as possible.' "
It is most probable that no shade of socialism will be able
to solve the problem of social life with a sufficient respect
for the maintenance of individual liberty. None the less
the progress of human knowledge will inevitably bring
about a great levelling of human fortunes. Intellectual
culture will lead men to give up many things that are
superfluous or even harmful, and that are still thought in-
dispensable by most people. The conceptions that the
greatest good fortune consists in the complete evolution of
the normal cycle of human life and that this goal can be
reached most easily by plain and sober habits will convince
men of the folly of much of the luxury that now shortens
human existence. Whilst the rich will choose a simpler
mode of life and the poor will be able to live better, none the
less, private property, acquired or inherited, may be main-
tained. Evolution must be gradual and much effort and
new knowledge is required. Sociology, a new-born science,
must learn of biology, her older sister- Biology teaches us
that in proportion that the organisation becomes more com-
plex, the consciousness of individuality develops, until a
point is reached at which individuality cannot be sacrificed
to the community. Amongst low creatures such as Myxo-
mycetes and Siphonophora, the individuals disappear
232 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
wholly or almost wholly in the community ; but the sacrifice
is small, as in these creatures the consciousness of indi-
viduality has not appeared. Social insects are in a stage
intermediate between that of the lower animals and man.
It is only in man that the individual has definitely acquired
consciousness, and for that reason a satisfactory social
organisation cannot sacrifice it on pretext of the common
good. To this conclusion the study of the social evolution
of living beings leads me.
It is plain that the study of human individuality is a
necessary step in the organisation of the social life of
human beings.
PART VII
PESSIMISM AND OPTIMISM
I
PREVALENCE OF PESSIMISM
Oriental origin of pessimism Pessimistic poets Byron
Leopardi Poushkin Lermontoff Pessimism and suicide
IN the attempt to formulate a pessimistic theory of human
nature, we are naturally led to ask why it is that so many
famous men have come to a purely pessimistic conception of
human life.
Pessimism, although it has been most prominent in
modern times, is extremely old. Everyone knows the pessi-
mistic wail of Ecclesiastes, written nearly ten centuries
before our era : " Vanity of Vanities, all is vanity."
Solomon, the supposed author, states that he " hated life,
because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous
unto me, for all is vanity and vexation of spirit " (Eccl. ii.,
I?)-
Buddha raised pessimisim to the rank of a doctrine. All
life seemed to him sorrow. "Birth is sorrow, old age is
sorrow, disease is sorrow, union with one whom we do not
love is sorrow, separation from one whom we love is sorrow,
not to gratify desire is sorrow, in short, our five bonds
with the things of the earth are sorrow." 1 This Buddhistic
1 Quoted by Oldenberg, Le Bouddha, French translation, Paris, 1894,
p. 214.
234 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
pessimism has been the source of most of the modern
pessimistic theories.
Pessimism arose in the East and was much in vogue in
India even apart from Buddhism. In the poems known
under the name of Bhartrihari, and dating from the begin-
ning of the Christian era, human life has been commiserated
in the following fashion. " One hundred years are the
limit of the life of man ; night takes half of them, half of
the other half is childhood and old age, the rest is rilled
with diseases, with separations and the misfortunes that
come from them, with working for others and with wasting
one's time. Where can happiness be found in an existence
most like to the bubbles in broken water?" "Man's
health is destroyed by every kind of care and disease.
When fortune comes to him, evil follows as if by an open
door. Death takes all human beings, one after the other,
and they can offer no resistance to their fate. What is there
assured amongst all that the mighty Brahma has created? " l
Pessimistic theories spread from the Asiatic East to
Egypt and Europe. Three centuries before the Christian
era, there arose the philosophy of Hegesias, which main-
tained that experience was generally deceptive and that en-
joyment was quickly followed by satiety and disgust. Ac-
cording to him, the sum of pain surpassed the sum of
pleasure in life, so that happiness was unattainable, and in
reality never existed. It was vain to seek pleasure and hap-
piness, as these could not be realised. It was better to try to
be indifferent, dulling feeling and desire. In fact, life was no
better than death, and it was often preferable to end it by
suicide. Hegesias was called Pisithanatos, the adviser of
death. " Listeners thronged around him, his doctrine
spread rapidly, and his disciples, persuaded by his voice,
1 P. R^gnaud, " Le pessimisme brahmanique," in Annales du Muse'e
Guimet, 1880, vol. i, pp. no-ill.
PREVALENCE OF PESSIMISM 235
gave themselves to death. Ptolemy was perturbed by it,
and fearing that the dislike of life would become contagious,
closed the school of Hegesias and exiled its master." 1
The pessimistic tendency sometimes appears in the writ-
ings of many Greek and Latin philosophers and poets.
Seneca wrote : " The spectacle of human life is lamentable.
New misfortunes overwhelm you before you have freed
yourself from the old ones." 2
It is in modern days, however, that there has been the
greatest spread of pessimism.
Besides the philosophical theories of the last century,
those of Schopenhauer, von Hartmann and Mailaender,
which I discussed sufficiently in The Nature of Man, poets
have formulated a pessimistic view of life. Even Voltaire
was a pessimist in the following lines :
Alas 1 what are the course and the goal of life ?
Only follies and then the darkness.
Oh Jupiter ! in creating us you made
A heartless jest.
In The Nature of Man I described Byron's expression
of his conception of the evils of human life. Soon after the
death of the great English poet, a celebrated Italian poet,
Giacomo Leopardi, sounded a note of abandoned pessim-
ism.
Here are words which he addressed to his own heart 3 :
" Be quiet for ever, you have beaten enough, nothing is
worthy of your beating and the earth is not worthy of your
sighs. Life is nothing but bitterness and weariness, there
is nothing else in it. The world is nothing but mire.
Repose from now onwards. Be in despair for ever. Destiny
has given us nothing but death. Despise henceforth your-
1 Guyau, La Morale d 1 Epicure, 4th edition, 1904, p. 116.
2 Ad Marciam, chap. x.
3 Poesies et oeuvres morales, by Leopardi. Translated into French
i8o, p. 49.
236 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
self and nature, and the shameful concealed power which
decrees the ruin of all and the infinite variety of all."
Leopardi makes his readers witnesses of his distraction
and his grief : " I shall study the blind truth " he wrote in
a poem dedicated to Charles P^poli " I shall study the
blind fates of things mortal and immortal. Why humanity
came into existence, and was burdened with pain and
sorrow, to what final end destiny and nature are driving it,
for whose pleasure or advantage is our great pain, what
order, what laws rule this mysterious universe which wise
men cover with praise, and I am content to wonder at "
(ibid., p. 15).
Quite a school of poets has been developed, singing
the pain of the world, the " Weltschmerz " of German
authors, amongst whom Heine and Nicolas Lenau are
specially distinguished.
Russian poetry was born under the influence of Byron-
ism, and its best exponents, Poushkin and Lermontoff,
often laboured over the problem of the object of human
existence, finding only sad answers. Poushkin, who is
justly regarded as the father of lyric poetry in Russia,
stated his pessimistic conception in the following lines :
Useless gift, gift of chance.
Life, why wert thou given me?
And why from the beginning art thou doomed
Irrevocably to death?
What unfriendly power
Has drawn me from the darkness,
Has filled my soul with passion,
And breathed doubt into my soul?
There is no goal for me,
My heart and my soul are empty ;
And the dull emotion of life
Has filled me with black care.
PREVALENCE OF PESSIMISM 237
Recently, Mde. Ackermann, in a series of short poems,
has given voice to the grief caused to her by the world and
life as they are, although she does not state exactly the
reason of her bitter complaints.
Whilst pessimistic philosophers and poets reflect the
thoughts and feelings of their contemporaries, it is certain
that they also seriously influence their readers. And so
there has come into existence a deeply rooted conviction
that the miseries of human life are far from being counter-
vailed by its happiness. Probably such ideas have influ-
enced the number of suicides. We do not know with any
certainty the real motives of most cases of self-destruction,
but it cannot be denied that the trend of modern thought
has played an important part. According to statistics, the
chief causes of suicide are "hypochondria, melancholia,
weariness of life, and unbalancing of the mind." Thus from
the Danish statistics it appears (and Denmark is the country
in which suicide is most prevalent) that of 1,000 cases of
suicides of males, between 1866 and 1895, 224, or one-
quarter, were referred to the causes I have just mentioned.
In the case of women, the corresponding figures are higher,
amounting to nearly one-half (403 out of 1,000). The
second most common cause of male suicides is alcoholism
(164 in ijooo). 1 It is very probable that pessimism was the
determining condition in most of the suicides referred to
these two categories of causes. Leaving out of the question
the true cases of mental alienation, amongst the victims of
melancholia, hypochondria and weariness of life, in whom
the mental condition was not pathological in the strict sense
of the word, there must have been many who killed them-
selves because their view of life was pessimistic. And
amongst the victims of drink, there are many who take to
1 These facts are taken from Westergaard, 2nd edit., 1901, p. 649.
238 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
alcohol because they are convinced that life is not worth
preserving.
The progressive increase in the numbers of suicides in
modern times is an index of the great influence of pessi-
mism. There have been even societies for the promotion
of suicide. In such a society, founded in Paris in the begin-
ning of last century, members placed their names in an urn,
to be drawn by chance. He whose name was drawn had
to kill himself in the presence of the other members.
According to its rules, this society admitted only persons
of honour who must have had experience of "the injustice
of man, the ingratitude of a friend, the infidelity of a wife
or mistress, and who, moreover, for many years had had a
void in their souls and a distaste of what this world can
offer." 1
Although such societies no longer exist, individuals con-
tinue to put their lives to an end, in greater numbers every
year.
1 Dieudonn, Archiv fiir Kulturgeschichte, 1903, vol. i, p. 357,
II
ANALYSIS OF PESSIMISM
Attempts to assign reasons for the pessimistic conception of
life Views of E. von Hartmann Analysis of Kowalevsky's
work on the Psychology of Pessimism
IN view of the facts I brought together in my last chapter,
there is occasion to inquire if it be possible to discover the
intimate mechanism by which men arrive at a conception of
life as an evil to be got rid of as quickly as possible. Why
do so many think that man is less happy than the beasts,
and that cultured and intelligent men are more unhappy
than those who are ignorant or feeble-minded ?
I have related how in a society of friends of suicide,
injustice and unfaithfulness were regarded as prime factors
in arousing a distaste for life. Shakspeare made Hamlet
exclaim that if it were possible to put an end to our days no
one would continue to live :
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely?
For Byron, besides diseases, death and slavery, the evils
that we see, there are others:
And worse, the woes we see not which throb through
The immedicable soul, with heart-aches ever new.
In many of his works he insists on the feeling of satiety
2 4 o THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
which was almost continually upon him. Every sensation
of pleasure that came to him was rapidly succeeded by a
still stronger feeling of disgust.
Heine thought that existence was evil and saw
.... across the hard surfaces of the rocks
The homes of men and the hearts of men
In the one as in the others, lies, imposture and misery.
As I urged in The Nature of Man, consciousness of
the shortness of human life has been an important factor
in exciting pessimism, and we find this theme recurring in
pessimistic writers. Leopardi returns to it again and again
in his poems. " Falling in peril of death from some mys-
terious disease," he said in his Souvenirs, "I lamented
over my sweet youth and the flower of my poor days which
was to fall so soon, and often in the midnight hours wove
from my sorrows, by the pale light of my lamp, a sad poem,
and in the silence of the night wept over my fleeting life,
and half fainting, sang to myself my funeral song " (loc.
cit., p. 28). The bas-relief on an ancient tomb, represent-
ing the departure of a young girl who took farewell of
her friends, suggested to Leopardi the following thoughts :
" Mother, who from their birth makes her family of living
beings tremble and weep, Nature, monster unworthy of our
praise, who brings into the world and nurtures only to kill,
if the premature death of a mortal be evil, why do you bring
it on so many innocent heads? If it be a good, why do you
make it sad for those who go and for those left behind ?
Why is it the hardest grief to console ? The only relief
from our woes is death, death, the inevitable end, the immu-
table law which you have established for human beings.
Why, alas, after the sad voyage of life, do you not make
the arrival joyful ? This certain end, this end which is in
our souls all our lives, which alone can soothe our troubles,
ANALYSIS OF PESSIMISM 241
why do you drape it in black and surround it with mournful
shades ? Why do you make the harbour more terrible than
the open seas?" (loc. cit., p. 55).
The three chief grievances injustice, disease, and death
often come together. From the anthropomorphic point
of view fate is represented as a sort of wicked being who
commits injustice by visiting all kinds of evils on mankind.
A pessimistic conception of life is arrived at by a complex
psychological process in which both feelings and reflection
are involved, and hence it is difficult to analyse it satisfac-
torily. Formerly, therefore, writers were content with
general and very vague estimates of the process by which
we may become pessimists. Ed. von Hartmann has tried
to deal more exactly with this inner process of the human
mind. In the first place, he lays stress on the fact that
pleasures always bring less satisfaction than pains bring
grief. False notes in music, for instance, are more painful
than the best music is delightful. The pain of toothache
is much more violent than the pleasure when relief comes.
So also with all diseases. In love, according to Hartmann,
the pleasure is always very greatly over-balanced by the
pain. Muscular work brings pleasure only in a very small
degree, and devotion to science and art and intellectual
work in general brings more pain than pleasure to the
votaries. As the result of an analysis, Hartmann is con-
vinced that there is much more pain than pleasure in the
world. Pessimism is founded upon the essential nature of
human feelings.
M. Kowalevsky, 1 a German philosopher at Koenigsberg,
adopting the modern habit of measuring mental processes
as exactly as possible, has recently published an attempt
1 Kowalevsky, Studien zur Psychologic des Pessitntsmus, Wiesbaden,
1904
R
242 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
to analyse pessimism psychologically. Although this has
not solved the problem, it is extremely interesting as an
instance of the application of the methods now being
adopted in modern psychology.
M. Kowalevsky took advantage of all the known methods
of estimating the relative values of our emotions; he tried
to make use of the notes of Munsterberg, another living
psychologist who kept a journal in which he set down daily
his psychical and psycho-physical impressions. The object
of the work had no relation to the question of pessimism,
and for that reason Kowalevsky thought that it was speci-
ally important in his investigations.
Munsterberg was not content with the existing classifica-
tion of emotions as agreeable or painful. He subdivided
them much further. He recognised, for instance, emotions
of tranquillity and excitement, serious and pleasant impres-
sions. Having completed the reckoning, Kowalevsky
came to the conclusion that his colleague, who was by no
means a pessimist, but a psychologist of well-balanced
mind, experienced many more painful emotions (about 60
per cent, as compared with 40 per cent.) than agreeable
emotions. " Such a result is in favour of pessimism," con-
cluded Kowalevsky.
However, he went beyond the foregoing enquiry. By
several other methods, he tried to gain an exact idea of the
value of our emotions. He visited elementary schools in
order to investigate the pleasures and pains of the scholars.
In the case of 104 boys, of eleven to thirteen years of age,
he found that pain was much more deeply felt than corre-
sponding pleasure. Thus, while in 88 cases illness was
set down as an evil, only in 21 was health reckoned as a
good. One-third of the pupils noted down war amongst
evils, whilst only one noted peace amongst the good things.
ANALYSIS OF PESSIMISM 243
Poverty was written down thirteen times as an evil, against
twice in which riches were put down as a good. In another
series of investigations, Kowalevsky took notes on the
pleasures and pains felt by pupils of the two sexes attend-
ing the same school. The result was that the greatest evil,
according to them, was illness, noted 43 times, then death
42 times, after which came fire 37 times, hunger 23 times,
floods 20 times. Amongst the good things, the first place
was given, as might have been expected, to games (30) and
the second to presents.
As Kowalevsky did not find that such investigations
could solve the problem, he tried to discover a more exact
method. With this object, he turned to different sensa-
tions, such as those of smell, hearing and taste, to which
he applied methods of exact measurement. In the case
of taste, for instance, he determined the minimum quantity
of different substances which could excite definitely plea-
sant or unpleasant sensations. In his experiments, Kowal-
evsky found that doses which gave bad tastes were not
balanced by those which gave good tastes. For instance,
to neutralise the unpleasant taste of quinine, it was neces-
sary to employ a much larger quantity of sugar. He was
specially pleased with one experiment. Four persons were
given definite mixtures of sugar and quinine in order to
discover the proportion of the two substances necessary to
obtain a neutral sensation. He found that to take away
the bad taste of quinine, it was necessary to double the
quantity of sugar given. Similarly with smells, he found
that those which were unpleasant were appreciated much
more strongly than those which were pleasant. Here, *"
then, was a series of scientific results supporting the view
of the pessimists. Must we really conclude from them
that the world is very badly arranged? The analysis of
R 2
244 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
good and bad temper made by Kowalevsky is in favour
of such an interpretation. In order to estimate these con-
ditions of mind, he measured the gait, that is to say, the
number of steps taken in a minute. This method depended
upon the following idea. It is an accepted view that the
condition of mind is shown by the rapidity of the human
walk ; we have only to compare the slow pace of a man in
deep grief with the rapid steps of a man in a state of joy.
Pain, as a general rule, depresses, while joy stimulates
voluntary movements. The result of the measurements
taken according to this method give a new argument in
favour of pessimism. However, it is useless to attempt
to analyse these figures on which Kowalevsky had to em-
ploy the integral calculus, because the principle of his
method cannot be supported. As a matter of fact, the
rapidity of walking is an index of the degree of excitation,
and not of the happy or unhappy condition of the mind.
When a person suddenly undergoes a strong impression,
either pleasant or unpleasant, he takes to walking actively
about in his room, and may even want to go out of doors
to walk more quickly. A letter which has been received
and which gives some unexpected news, as for instance
of the infidelity of a person one loves, or of an inheritance
which one did not expect, produces a condition of excite-
ment shown chiefly by rapid walking. Many orators and
professors have to make gestures and to walk about in
the course of their lectures. A man of science to whom
some new idea comes and who wishes to think.it out, rises
from his chair and begins to walk. But not only on such
pleasant occasions, but when one has to face an insult or
an act of defiance which makes one very angry, the need
to walk actively is felt. It is therefore impossible to utilise
records of movements in the study of the pessimistic state
of mind.
ANALYSIS OF PESSIMISM 245
M. Kowalevsky employed still another mode of attack-
ing the problem. He examined the recollection of painful
or pleasant impressions. He asked the children of both
sexes, whom he was investigating, questions which gave
him indications as to whether pleasures or pains made the
more lasting impression on the memory, and he registered
the answers. The result, which agreed with what had
already been obtained by Mr. Colegrove, an American
psychologist, was unfavourable to the pessimistic view.
He found, in fact, that in the majority of cases (70 per
cent.) recollection of pleasant impressions predominated.
However, in such investigations there is a facile source of
error arising from the condition of mind of those who are
being questioned. It is probable that Kowalevsky made
his enquiry in school during recreation time, when most
of the pupils were free from the boredom of the actual
class. When we are happy the tendency exists in us to
recall pleasant impressions of the past. If the enquiry had
been made during a difficult or wearying lesson, or on
children shut up in a hospital, or undergoing punishment,
it is probable that the result would have been reversed.
It is evident that all such attempts to solve a problem
so complex as that of pessimism, even by the so-called
exact methods of physiological psychology, cannot lead to
any convincing result. Thus Kowalevsky's different in-
vestigations led to contradictory conclusions. Whilst some
of his series of facts supported the pessimistic conception,
others were opposed to it, and he obtained no definite
general conclusion. How can one expect to apply a
method of measurement to sensations and emotions so
different, not only from the qualitative point of view,
but also in relation to their intensity ? Take, for instance,
the case of an individual who has experienced in one day
nine sensations which were painful and one which was
246 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
agreeable. According to the valuation of experimental
psychologists, he ought to have reason to become a pessi-
mist. However, this may be far from the case, if the nine
painful impressions were much weaker than the single
happy impression. The first were provoked by small
wounds to his pride, fleeting pains of no importance, and
small losses of money, whilst the happy emotion came from
receiving a love letter. The sum of the ten impressions
would be a happy one, and might well put him in an opti-
mistic frame of mind. The learned attempts of experimental
psychologists must be abandoned, as incapable of illumina-
ting the problem. If, however, the human spirit still seeks
some means of explaining the psychology of pessimism,
there remains only the less subtle method given by the bio-
graphical study of human beings.
Ill
PESSIMISM IN ITS RELATION TO HEALTH AND AGE
Relation between pessimism and the state of the health
History of a man of science who was pessimistic when young,
and who became an optimist in old age Optimism of
Schopenhauer when old Development of the sense of life
Development of the senses in blind people The sense of
obstacles
ANIMALS and children in good health are generally cheerful
and of optimistic temperament. As soon as they fall ill
they become sad and melancholy until their recovery. We
may infer from this that an optimistic view is correlated
with normal health, whilst pessimism arises from some
physical or mental disease. And so in the case of the
prophets of pessimism, we may seek for the origin of their
views in some affliction. The pessimism of Byron has
been attributed to his club-foot, and that of Leopardi to
tuberculosis, these two nineteenth century exponents of pes-
simism having died whilst young. Buddha and Schopen-
hauer, on the other hand, reached old age, whilst Hart-
mann died when sixty-four years old. Their diseases at the
time when they formed their theories could not have been
very dangerous, and none the less they took a most gloomy
view of human existence. The recent historical investiga-
tions of Dr. Iwan Bloch 1 make it very probable that
Schopenhauer, in his youth, contracted syphilis. There
1 Meduinische Klinik, 1906, n. 25 and 26.
248 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
has been found a note-book of the great philosopher in
which he wrote down the details of the severe mercurial
treatment which he had to undergo. The disease, how-
ever, was not contracted until several years after the appear-
ance of his great pessimistic work.
Although we must attach due weight to the connection
between disease and pessimism, we can assure ourselves
that the problem is more complex than it appears at first
sight. It is well known that blind people often enjoy a
constant good humour, and, amongst the apostles of op-
timism, there has been the philosopher Duering, 1 who lost
his sight during his youth.
Moreover, it has been noticed that persons affected with
chronic diseases frequently have a very optimistic concep-
tion of life, whilst young people in full strength may
become sad, melancholic, and abandoned to the most ex-
treme pessimism. Such a contrast has been well described
by Emile Zola in his novel La Joie de Vivre, where a
rheumatic old man, tried by severe attacks of gout, main-
tained his good humour, whilst his young son, although
vigorous and in good health, professed extreme pessi-
mism.
I have a cousin who lost his sight in early youth. When
he grew up he formed a most enviable judgment of life. He
lived in his imagination and everything in life seemed to
him good and beautiful ; he married, and pictured his wife
to himself as the most beautiful woman in the world, and
thus he feared nothing more than the recovery of his sight.
He had adapted himself to live without sight, and was con-
vinced that the reality was much lower than his imagina-
tion. He feared that if he were able to see his wife she
would appear to him less beautiful.
1 Der Werth des Lebens.
PESSIMISM AND HEALTH AND AGE 249
I know a girl twenty-six years old, blind from her birth,
the subject of infantile paralysis and liable to fits of
epilepsy. She is nearly an idiot, lives- in a carriage, and
sees life from its best side. She is certainly the most
happy member of all her family.
The good humour and megalomania of those affected
with general paralysis of the insane also is well known. All
such examples show that pessimism cannot be explained as
depending on bad health.
Examination of the state of mind of a pessimist may
throw some light on the subject. There has been within
my own circle a typical case of a person who went through
a phase of life in which everything seemed as gloomy as
possible. My intimate knowledge of him makes it possible
to apply my observations to the matter under discussion.
The subject was born of parents of good health and in
comfortable circumstances, so that, from the beginning of
his life, he was surrounded by a favourite environment. He
lived in the country and escaped the diseases of childhood,
so that he reached maturity in good health, and passed well
through college and the university. Science attracted him,
and he had the ambition to become a distinguished investi-
gator. He threw himself into a scientific career with zeal
and ability. His ardent disposition, although certainly
favourable to work, was the cause of many troubles. He
wished to succeed too quickly, and the obstacles he encoun-
tered embittered him. As he thought himself naturally
talented, he conceived it to be the duty of his seniors to aid
his development. And so, when he met with natural and
very common indifference from those who had already b-
come successful, the young man thought that there was a
plot against him, to bring to nothing his scientific talents.
From this view, many quarrels and difficulties arose, and as
250 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
he could not overcome these sufficiently quickly, he fell
into a mood of pessimism. In this life, he said to himself,
the main thing is to adapt oneself to external conditions.
According to Darwin's law of natural selection, the indivi-
duals who do not succeed in adapting themselves go to the
wall. The survivors are not the best but only the most
cunning. In the history of the earth it has been seen that
many lower animals have long survived creatures much
higher in organisation and general evolution. Whilst so
many of the higher mammals, the nearest relatives of man,
have been crushed out of existence, simpler animals, such
as evil-smelling cockroaches, have survived from the re-
motest times, and multiply in the neighbourhood of man
in despite of his efforts to exterminate them. The animal
series and human evolution itself show that delicacy of the
nervous system, with its concomitant extreme development
of the sensibilities, hinders the power of adaptation and
brings with it insuperable evils. The least blow to his pride,
or a slighting word from a comrade, threw this pessimist
into a most painful condition. No, he would cry, it would
be better to be without friends, if one is to be wounded so
deeply by them. It would be best to seclude oneself in
some remote spot and be engrossed in one's work. He was
very impressionable and a lover of music, and from his
visits to the opera, he retained in his mine! an air from the
" Flute enchantee." " Were I as small as a snail, I would
hide myself in my shell." His moral hypersensibility was
associated with physical hyperaesthesia. Noises of all
kinds, such as the whistling of railway-trains, the cries of
street-vendors, or the barking of dogs, excited extremely
painful sensations. The least trace of light prevented him
from sleeping at night. The unpleasant flavour of most
drugs made it impossible for him to take medicine. He
PESSIMISM AND HEALTH AND AGE 251
agreed thoroughly with the pessimistic philosophers who
declare that the ills of life far surpass the good things. He
required no experiments on the sense of taste to convince
him. He believed that the organisation of his body pre-
vented him from becoming adapted to external conditions
and that he would have to disappear like the mammoth and
the anthropoid apes.
The course of his life confirmed the convictions of our
pessimist. He had no private fortune and married a woman
who became affected with tuberculosis, and so was con-
fronted with the greatest evils of existence. A young lady,
hitherto in good health, contracted influenza in some
northern town. It was a mere nothing, said the doctors;
influenza is everywhere and no one escapes it; after a little
patience and rest, she will be well again. However the
" influenza " persisted and brought with it feebleness and
wasting. The doctors then found that there was a little
dullness in the apex of the left lung, but as there was no bad
family history, there was nothing to fear. I need not
describe the familiar course of events. The trifling influ-
enza was replaced by degeneration of the left lung, and
brought death after four years of great suffering. Towards
the end, when there was no hope, the patient found her only
solace in morphine. Under the influence of that drug, she
passed hours free from pain and in relative calm, but her
excited imagination passed almost into hallucination.
It is not surprising that the death of his wife was a severe
shock to the husband. His pessimism became complete.
He was a widower at the age of twenty-eight years, and, in
his condition of mental and physical exhaustion, took to
morphine like his wife. He knew that it was a poison which
would complete the ruin of his constitution and make his
work impossible. But what was the value of his life? As
252 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
his organisation was too nervous for him to adapt himself
10 external conditions, was it not as well to come to the aid
of natural selection and so make room for others ? As it hap-
pened, a large dose of morphia did not solve the problem.
It produced in him a condition of extraordinary happiness
combined with extreme physical weakness. Little by little
the instinct of life awoke in him, and he resumed his work.
Pessimism, however, remained the fundamental quality in
his character. Life was not worth the pains necessary to
protect it. It would be a true crime to bring into the world
other living beings doomed to elimination by natural selec-
tion. Moral and physical sensibility, as they continued to
develop, brought with them so much evil that there could
be no good end. The " injustice" of those who were un-
willing to " understand " him made life painful to the man
himself and to those about him. The closest absorption
and hard work made his existence more tolerable, but his
pessimistic conception was not in the least altered. Thus,
he was easily driven to morphia for consolation, when he
suffered from some act of "injustice" or vexation. A
severe fit of poisoning, however, stopped this excess.
Years passed. When he discussed with his friends the
problem of the goal of human life and similar topics, he
was always ardent in supporting the point of view of pes-
simism. However, he occasionally wondered if his pleading
for this were really sincere. As his nature was honest and
frank, this question which he put to his conscience appeared
most curious to him. Analysis of what passed in his mind
revealed to him a change. It was not that his conceptions
had changed in the course of years, but rather his feelings
and sensations. As he was now in full maturity, between
forty-five and fifty years old, he found that there was a great
change in the intensity of these last. Disagreeable sounds
PESSIMISM AND HEALTH AND AGE 253
did not trouble him to the same extent as formerly, and
he was undisturbed by the caterwauling of cats or by harsh
street cries. As his hypersensibility diminished his
character became more tolerant. Even the injustices or
wounds to his pride which formerly drove him to mor-
phia, no longer provoked in him any painful reaction. He
could easily conceal the bad effect of these upon him, and
no longer felt them with the same intensity. Thus his
character had become much more supportable to those with
him, and much better balanced.
" It is old age which is come upon me," he cried ; " I feel
painful impressions much less acutely and pleasant impres-
sions have less effect on me. The relative proportions of the
two remain as before, that is to say, unpleasant things still
impress me much more strongly than pleasant things." By
analysing and comparing his emotions, he discovered some-
thing new, in fact that some impressions were, so to speak,
neutral. As he was less sensitive to unharmonious sounds,
and at the same time less affected by music itself, he found
himself in a more tranquil condition. Awakening in the
middle of the night, he experienced a kind of happiness
which reminded him -of that formerly produced by mor-
phine, and which was characterised by his hearing no sound,
either pleasant or unpleasant. He became less disgusted
by drugs, but at the same time indifferent to the pleasures
of the table which he had appreciated in his youth. He
also delighted in consuming more and more simple food.
A piece of black bread and a glass of water became real
treats to him. Insipid dishes, which he formerly despised,
were now specially agreeable to him.
Just as in the evolution of art, violent coloration has
yielded to the low tones of Puvisde Chavannes, as views of
fields and meadows are preferred to those of mountains and
254 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
lakes ; just as in literature, tragic and romantic studies have
been successfully replaced by scenes of daily life, so the
psychical development of my friend displayed a similar
change. Instead of taking his pleasure in mountains or in
places famed for their picturesqueness, he was content to
watch the budding of the leaves of the trees of his garden,
or a snail overcoming its fears and putting out its horns.
The simplest occurrences, such as the lisping or the smile
of a baby or the first words of a child, became sources of
real delight to this elderly man of science. What was the
meaning of these changes which took so many years to
be accomplished? It was the growth of his sense of life.
The instinct of life is little developed in youth. Just as a
young woman gets more pain than pleasure from the earlier
part of her married life, just as a new-born baby cries, so
the impressions from life, especially when they are very
keenly felt, bring more pain than pleasure during a long
period of human life. The sensations and feelings are not
stable; they undergo evolution, and when that takes place
more or less normally, it brings about a state of psychical
equilibrium.
And thus my friend, formerly so entrenched in pessimism,
came to share my optimistic view of life. The discussions
that we had had for so many years ended in complete agree-
ment. " However," said he, " to understand the value of
life, one must have lived long ; otherwise one is in the posi-
tion of a man blind from his birth to whom are recounted
the beauties of colours." In a word, my friend towards the
end of his life changed from abject pessimism to complete
optimism.
Such a transformation or evolution cannot be regarded
as unusual. In The Nature of Man, I showed that most
of the great pessimistic writers had been young men.
PESSIMISM AND HEALTH AND AGE 255
Such were Buddha. Byron, Leopardi, Schopenhauer, Hart-
mann, and Mailaender, and there might be added many
other names of less well known men.
The question has often been asked why Schopenhauer,
who was certainly sincere in his philosophy and who ex-
tolled Nirvana as the perfect state, came to have a strong
attachment to life, instead of putting it to a premature end
as was done later on by Mailaender. The reason was that
the philosopher of Frankfort lived long enough to acquire
a strong instinct of life. M. Moebius, 1 a well-known autho-
rity on madness, has made a close investigation of Schopen-
hauer's biography, and has established the fact that towards
the end of his life his views were tinged with optimistic
colours. On his seventieth anniversary, he took pleasure in
the consoling idea of the Hindoo Oupanischad and of
Flourens that the span of man's life might reach a century.
As Moebius put it, " Schopenhauer as an old man enjoyed
life and was no longer a pessimist " (p. 94). Not long
before his death he still hoped to survive yet another
twenty years. It is true that Schopenhauer never
recanted his early pessimistic writings, but that was
probably because he did not fully realise his own mental
evolution.
In looking through the work of modern psychologists, I
cannot find recognition of the cycle of evolution of the
human mind. In Kowalevsky's able and conscientious
study of pessimism, I was specially struck by one phrase.
" Evils such as hunger, disease, and death are equally ter-
rible at all stages of life and in every rank of society"
(p- 95) said that author. I notice here a failure to recog-
nise the modification of the emotions in the course of life
which, none the less, is one of the great facts of human
1 Ueber Schopenhauer, Leipzig, 1899.
256 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
nature. Fear of death is by no means equally great at
all stages of life. A child is ignorant of death and has
no conscious aversion from it. The youth and the young
man know that death is a terrible thing, but they have not
the horror of it that comes to a mature man in whom the
instinct of life has become fully developed. And we see
that young men are careless of the laws of hygiene, whilst
old men devote to them sedulous attention. This differ-
ence is probably a notable cause of pessimism in young
men. In his studies of the mind, Moebius : has stated his
view that pessimism is a phase of youth which is succeeded
by a serener spirit. " One may remain a pessimist in
theory," he says, " but actually to be one, it is necessary
to be young. As years increase, a man clings more firmly
to life." " When an old man is free from melancholia, he
is not a pessimist at heart." "We cannot yet explain
clearly the psychology of the pessimism of the young, but
at least we can lay down the proposition that it is a disease
of youth" (p. 182).
The cases of Schopenhauer and of the man of science
whose psychical history I have sketched fully confirm the
view of the alienist of Leipzig.
The conception that there is an evolution of the instinct
of life in the course of the development of a human being
is the true foundation of optimistic philosophy. It is so
important that it should L? examined with the minutest
care. Our senses are capable of great cultivation. Artists
develop the sense of colour far beyond the point attained by
ordinary men, and distinguish shades that others do not
notice. Hearing, taste, and smell also can be educated.
Wine tasters have an appreciation of wine much more acute
than that of other men. A friend of mine, who does not
1 Moebius, Goethe, vol. i, Leipzig, 1903.
PESSIMISM AND HEALTH AND AGE 257
drink wine, can distinguish burgundy from claret only by
the shapes of the bottles, but is devoted to tea and has a
very fine palate for different blends. I do not know if a
good palate is a natural gift, but however this may be, it is
certain that the palate can be brought to a high condition
of perfection.
The development of the senses is specially notable in
the case of the blind in whom other powers become ex-
tremely acute. As I thought that investigation of the
educability of other senses in blind persons very important
from the point of view of the development of the sense of
life, I have tried to obtain the best available information
on the question. The perfection of touch in the blind is
accepted so generally as a truth that one would have ex-
pected to find convincing facts in its favour. However, it
is not true. Griesbach, 1 using a well-known method for
estimating tactile discrimination, found that the sense of
touch is not more acute in the blind than in normal persons.
Blind persons distinguished the points of a pair of com-
passes as separate, only when they were at least as far apart
as in case of normal persons. Dr. Javal, 2 a well-known
oculist who himself became blind, stated his surprise at find-
ing that " tactile discrimination is quite notably less acute in
the case of the blind than in the case of those with unimpaired
vision. For instance, the index finger of a blind man who
was a great reader got separate sensations from the points
of a pair of compasses only when these were three milli-
metres apart, whilst a man with normal sight had the
double sensation at a distance of two millimetres " (p. 123).
Griesbach goes still farther, stating that neither hearing
1 V. Kunz, " Zur Blindenphysiologie," Wiener medicin. Wochenschrift,
1902, No. 21.
Physiologic de la Lecture et de fcriture, Paris, 1905.
S
258 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
nor smell is better developed in the blind than amongst
normal people. Although these senses may come to re-
place to a certain extent the sense of sight, this occurs
merely because the blind person uses impressions which
the clear-sighted person hardly notices. As we see what
is going on around us, we do not concentrate our attention
on the different sounds and smells or other such pheno-
mena. The blind person, on the other hand, not being
absorbed by impressions of sight, gives attention to the
others. Such and such a sound tells him that the garden
gate of his neighbour has been opened to let out a carriage
which he must avoid. A particular smell lets him recog-
nise the place where he is, as stable or kitchen.
From the prese'nt point of view, it is not exactly the
acuteness of the senses which is most important. The
acuteness might be equal in a blind person and in a normal
person. It might even be greater in the latter, and yet it
is only the blind person who can decipher without difficulty
raised points so as to understand their meaning as well as
when a normal person reads a printed book. This power
of the blind person is developed only after a long period
of learning, and depends on the appreciation of very deli-
cate tactile impressions. I must point out, moreover, that
the method of deciding by means of a pair of compasses
gives information only with regard to one side of the tactile
sense.
However, although we admit that blind people do not
really gain anything in the four remaining senses, there
is developed in them a special kind of sensibility, which is
spoken of in their case as a sixth sense, the "sense of
obstacles." Blind people, especially those who have lost
their sight in youth, acquire a surprising habit of avoiding
obstacles and of recognising at a distance objects round
PESSIMISM AND HEALTH AND AGE 259
about them. Blind children, for instance, can play 'in a
garden, without knocking themselves against the trees.
Dr. Javal 1 states that some blind people, when passing in
front of a house, can count the ground floor windows. A
professor, who had been blind from the age of four years,
could walk in the garden without striking against a tree
or post. He appreciated a wall at a distance of two metres
from it. One day, going for the first time into a large
apartment, he recognised the presence of a big piece of
furniture in the middle, which he took to be a billiard table.
Another blind man, walking in the street, could distin-
guish houses from shops and could count the number of
doors and windows. The existence of this sense of ob-
stacles rests upon so many exact facts that it is indubitable.
The opinions as to the mechanism by which it operates,
however, are very varied. Dr. Zell 2 thinks that it is not
a sense peculiar to blind people and "that those of normal
sight could equally well acquire it by practice, because it
exists in nearly everyone without being noticed." None
the less, there are some blind people who, even in the course
of years, do not acquire it. M. Javal, for instance, learnt
to read with his fingers extremely well, but was never able
to distinguish obstacles at a distance.
The most probable hypothesis refers this sixth sense to
the action of the tympanic membrane and the auditory
apparatus. It is known that loud noise makes it more
difficult to perceive obstacles, and snow, by dulling the
sound of steps, has a precisely similar effect. Blind tuners,
in whom the sense of hearing is well developed, have the
sixth sense very marked.
The examples I have given show that the human body
possesses senses which come into operation only in special
1 Entre aveugles, Paris, 1903. 2 Der Blindenfreund^ Feb. i5th, 1906.
S 2
260 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
conditions, and which require a special education. The
"sense of life" to a certain extent comes within this
category. In some persons it develops very imperfectly,
generally revealing itself only late in life, but some-
times a disease or the danger of losing life stimulates its
earlier development. Occasionally in persons who have
tried to commit suicide, a strong instinct of life wakens
suddenly, and impels them to make frantic efforts to escape.
It happens, therefore, that the sense of life develops
sometimes in healthy people, sometimes in those who suffer
from acute or chronic disease. These variations are parallel
with the development of the sexual instinct, which in some
women is completely absent and in others develops only
very late. In certain cases, it is awakened only by special
conditions, such as child-birth, or even some defect of
health.
As the sense of life can be developed, special pains ought
to be taken with it, just as with the making perfect of the
other senses in the blind. Young people who are inclined
to pessimism ought to be informed that their condition of
mind is only temporary, and that according to the laws of
human nature it will later on be replaced by optimism.
PART VIII
GOETHE AND FAUST
I
GOETHE'S YOUTH
Goethe's youth Pessimism of youth Werther Tendency
to suicide Work and love Goethe's conception of life in
his maturity
THERE can be drawn from analysis of the lives of great men
information that is very important in the study of the con-
stitution of man. I have chosen Goethe for several
reasons. He was a man of genius distinguished by the
comprehensive character of his ability. He was a poet and
dramatist of the highest rank, his mind was stored with
the most varied knowledge, and he contributed to the ad-
vancement of natural science. As minister of state and as
the director of a theatre, he was occupied with practical
affairs. He reached the age of eighty-three years, and he
passed through the phases of life in relatively normal
circumstances ; in his many writings there are most valuable
facts which throw a keen light on his life and nature. The
Goethe cult in Germany has brought about the existence
of fuller biographical details than exist regarding any other
great man. He aspired to lead "the higher life," and,
throughout his existence, he occupied himself with the
most serious problems of humanity.
It is not surprising that Goethe became a subject of
262 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
investigation for me, but as the main facts as to his history
are widely known I need not elaborate them here.
Goethe was reared in circumstances that were favourable
in every respect, and from his earliest years showed re-
markable traits. As his memory was good and his ima-
gination vast, the study of ancient and modern languages
and the routine curriculum of a classical education were
little more than an amusement to him. The rich library
of his father placed all sorts of books at his disposal, and
whilst he was still young he devoted himself to reading
with the enthusiasm and passion that were the chief quali-
ties of his character. When he was fifteen years old he
began to write verses, although he was still unconscious
of his destiny as a poet. He intended to be a learned man,
and looked forward to the career of a professor.
At the age of sixteen, he entered the University of Leip-
zig with the intention of studying natural science seriously.
Law and philosophy interested him but little; he turned to
natural science and medicine, although his actual study
was rather superficial. His disposition was lively and rest-
less; he made many friends, frequented the theatre and
plunged into all kinds of gaiety. Extracts from letters he
wrote during this period show the kind of life he led.
When he was a student, eighteen years old, he wrote to a
friend, " And so good-night; I am drunk as a hog." A
month later, to the same friend, he summed up his life as
a "delirium in the arms of Jetty."
He graduated in law at Strassburg, and became a
barrister, but realising that such a career was unsuitable,
he became a man of letters, encouraged by the success of
his first literary efforts.
From the point of view of a writer, he sought all kinds of
experiences. He devoted himself to literature and science,
GOETHE'S YOUTH 263
including even the occult sciences, and frequented the
theatre and society. He was specially attracted by the
imaginative side and gave little thought to the problems of
science. " I must have movement," he wrote in one of
his note-books.
When he was young, his temper was violent and he fell
into fits of passionate rage. His contemporaries have re-
lated that when he was in such a condition he would destroy
the illustrations and tear up the books on his work-table.
These experiences have been vividly described in his
famous romance, The Sorrows of Werther. I shall give
a few extracts to show the exact state of mind of the young
pessimist. "It is the fate of some men not to be under-
stood." " Human life is a dream ; I am not the first to say
that, but the idea haunts me. When I reflect on the narrow
limits which circumscribe the powers of man, his activities
and intelligence; when I see how we exhaust our forces in
satisfying our wants and that these wants are for no more
than the prolongation of a miserable existence; that our
acquiescence in so much is merely resignation engendered
by dreams, like that of a prisoner who has covered the
walls of his cell with pictures and new landscapes; such
things, my friend, plunge me into silence." "Our learned
teachers all agree that children do not know why they have
desires; but that grown men should move on the earth
like children, and, like these, be ignorant whence they have
come and whither they go, like these strive little for real
things, but be ruled by cakes and sweets and rods; no one
will believe such things, though their truth is patent. I
admit readily (for I know what you will say) that they ape
the happiest men who live from day to day like children,
who play with their dolls, dress them and undress them,
who reverence the cupboard where mamma keeps the
264 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
gingerbread, and who, when they have got what they wish,
cry, with their mouths full, ' How happy we are ! ' '
Werther proclaimed his pessimism before his romance
with Charlotte, and it was his view of life that made his
love-affair turn out unhappily. But the fame of Goethe's
Werther was due, not to the tragic fate of the young lover,
but to the general views which were in harmony with the
conception of the world held by the best minds of the time.
Byronism was born before Byron.
Werther affords a good illustration of the disharmonies
in the development of man's psychical nature. Inclination
and desires develop extremely strongly and before will.
Just as in the development of the reproductive functions,
as I showed in The Nature of Man, the different factors
develop unequally and unharmoniously, so there is in-
equality and disharmony in the order of the appearance of
the higher psychical faculties. Sexual appreciation and a
vague attraction to the other sex appear at a time when
there can be no possibility of the normal physical side of
sex, with the result that many evils come about in the long
period of youth. The precocious development of sensi-
bility brings about a kind of diffused hyperaesthesia which
may lead to trouble. The infant wishes to lay hold of
everything he sees before him ; he stretches out his arms to
grasp the moon and suffers from his inability to gratify his
desires. In youth there is still well-marked disharmony.
Young people cannot realise the true relations of things, and
formulate their desires before they understand that their will-
power is not strong enough to gratify them, as will is the
latest of the human powers to develop.
Werther fell in love with a kindred spirit and gave way
to his passion without consideration of the difficulties,
Charlotte being already betrothed to another. This is the
GOETHE'S YOUTH 265
plot of the tragedy of the young man, who committed 1
suicide, having given way to pessimism. He had not the
will-power to conquer his sentiments and so fell into a state
of lassitude, until, weary of life, he could see no other end
than to blow out his brains.
I need not linger over the last phase of the story of
Werther, for it is the character of Goethe himself that is of
interest. Goethe was able to subdue his passion for Lotte,
and, after many amorous woes, consoled himself with
another woman. Notwithstanding this difference, it is cer-
tain that in Werther, Goethe was telling part of the story
of his own youth. Goethe himself is a witness to this, for
in a letter to Kestner he wrote that " he was at work on the
artistic reproduction of his own case." The letter was
written in July, 1773, whilst Goethe, then a writer twenty-
four years old, was relating the sorrows of young Werther.
The general tendency of Werther has been described
excellently by Carlyle. 1 " Werther," he wrote, " is but the
cry of that dim, rooted pain, under which all thoughtful
men of a certain age were languishing ; it paints the misery,
it passionately utters the complaint ; and heart and voice,
all over Europe, loudly and at once responded to it."
Werther was " the first thrilling peal of that impassioned
dirge which, in country after country, men's ears have lis-
tened to, till they were deaf to all else."
In the pessimistic period of his life, Goethe often cherished
the idea of suicide. In his biography he relates that at this
time he used to have, by his bedside, a poisoned dagger,
and that he had repeatedly tried to plunge it in his bosom.
Of these times he wrote to his friend Zelter 2 "I kno"w
._
1 Critical and Miscellaneous Essays, vol. i, pp. 164-5, ' n ^ e Essay on
Goethe.
2 Briefwechsel zwischen Goethe und Zelter. Letter of Dec. 3, 1812.
266 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
what it has cost me in effort to resist the waves of death."
The suicide which was the subject .of the end of his romance
made a deep impression upon him. Although he overcame
his passion for Charlotte, his view of life remained tinged
with pessimism for many years; in a note-book of 1773, for
instance, he wrote " I am not made for this world." 1 These
words are the more striking as they date from a period when
exact ideas regarding the adaptation of the organism and
the character to the environment did not exist. Goethe,
with his too delicate sensibility, felt himself out of harmony
w'ith his environment.
It is very interesting to trace Goethe's subsequent de-
velopment and the transformation of a youthful pessimist
into a convinced optimist. Goethe found a remedy for his
crises of grief in work, poetical creation and love. He
declared that the mere describing his woes on paper brought
assuagement. The tears that they shed console women and
children ; and the poetry in which he expresses his suffer-
ing consoles the poet. Goethe's romance w r ith Charlotte
was not quite at an end when he found himself ready to
love her sister Helen. He wrote to Kestner in December,
1772: "I was about to ask you if Helen had arrived,
when I got the letter telling me of her return." " To judge
from her portrait she must be charming, even more charm-
ing than Charlotte. Well, I am free and I am thirsting
for love." " I am here at Frankfort again with new plans
and new dreams, and all will be well if I find someone to
love." Soon afterwards, in another letter to Kestner, he
wrote: "Tell Charlotte that I have found here a girl
whom I love with all my heart; if I wanted to marry, I
should choose her before anyone else."
As he had not yet realised his true vocation, Goethe
became a court minister at Weimar. He devoted himself
1 Quoted in Moebius' Goethe, vol. ii, p. 80.
GOETHE'S YOUTH 267
to his duties with an enthusiasm that carried him far beyond
the usual affairs of state. He wished to deepen his know-
ledge of such administrative problems as the construction
of roads and the management of mines, and he studied
geology and mineralogy with a real zest. Forest adminis-
tration and agriculture led him seriously into botany, and as
he had the direction of a school of design, he thought it
necessary to learn anatomy. Such varied work gave him
a real taste for science. It was no longer the superficial
interest that characterised his work at Leipzig and Strass-
burg but a true devotion which led him to important dis-
coveries, some of which have become classic.
Even such varied occupations did not absorb his pro-
digious genius. In his leisure he wrote poetry and prose.
Engrossed in so much work, he was happy. His discovery
of the human intermaxillary bone suffused him with joy.
His intense activity was strengthened by his love for
Madame von Stein, a love that he declared was " a life-belt
supporting* him in the sea." A few hours with her in the
evenings set free his soul.
The powerful influence of love on the life of Goethe was
specially prominent in this period when he was passing
from pessimistic youth to optimistic maturity. Being
forced to separate from Madame von Stein, he gave way to
grief that plunged him again in the worst hours of his life.
At the age of thirty-seven he fell back into a crisis like that
of the days of Werther. "I have discovered," he said in
1786, " that the author of Werther would have done well to
blow out his brains when he had finished his work." Soon
afterwards he wrote that "death would have been better
than the last years of his life."
This relapse into pessimism was shorter and less acute
than his first experience. He began to find that frequently
his delight in existence and sense of life were proved by his
268 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
fear of death. When he was little more than thirty years
old, he began to take precautions against the chance of his
death. He wrote to Lavater : " I have no time to lose;
I am already getting on in years, and it may be that fate
will destroy me in the midst of my life." On all sides his
wish to live and his shrinking from death reveal themselves.
It was at this time, a few days after his thirty-first birthday,
that he wrote those famous lines, counted amongst the
finest of his poetry, on the summit of the Gickelhahn, on
the wall of a small room, and which end with the presenti-
ment of his own death, " Before long, you also will be at
rest."
The crisis through which he passed at the age of thirty-
seven, as the immediate result of his separation from
Madame von Stein, but perhaps also partly due to brain
fatigue, brought about his sudden departure from Weimar
and his long sojourn in Italy. There he came to life again,
and everything interested him, archaeology, art and nature.
The joy of life came back to him, and he soon consoled him-
self for the lost love of the blue-stocking Baroness in the
arms of a pretty, blue-eyed girl of Milan. This girl, whose
name was MaddalenaRiggi, like Charlotte, was already be-
trothed, a circumstance, however, that had a different result.
Even after she had given up the man to whom she had been
engaged, Goethe avoided any permanent bond and soon
abandoned her definitely. He chose to associate with
Faustine, another Italian girl, with whom he lived during
the last period of his stay at Rome. This affair, which was
less ideal and much simpler than his love for Madame von
Stein, he has described in his Roman Elegies, which throw
a vivid light on his temperament. I shall give some char-
acteristic extracts.
" A sacred enthusiasm inspires me on this classic soil ;
the old world and the world around me raise their voices
GOETHE'S YOUTH 269
and draw me to them. Here I follow the ideas and turn
over the pages of the ancient writers, giving myself no rest
whilst day lasts and ever reaching new delights. By night
love calls me to other cares ; and if I am only half a philo-
sopher, I am twice happy. But may I not say that I am
also learning when my eye follows the contours of a loving
breast, when with my hand I trace the lines of her form ?
It is then that I understand marble, I think and compare, I
see with an eye that touches and touch with a hand that
sees." "Often I have made verses in her arms; often my
playful finger has softly beaten out my hexameters on her
back. As she breathes in her sweet sleep, her breath burns
me to my innermost soul." 1
His stay in Italy brought Goethe definitely to maturity.
On this important stage in his life let us hear his bio-
grapher, Bielschowsky. " The voyage to Italy made a
new man of him. His sickliness and nervousness dis-
appeared. The melancholy which led him to think of early
death and made him regard death as better than the former
conditions of his life was replaced by a sublime serenity
and joy in living. The taciturn and preoccupied man who
in no society abandoned his grave thoughts had become
happy as a child " (vol. i, p. 412). " From this time on,
in calm and enviable security, he passed through the cycle
of life which seemed so mysterious to others. Goethe
became the serene Olympian, the wonder of posterity,
whilst many of his contemporaries no longer saw in him
the passionate pilgrim " (ibid., p. 417).
It was after reaching the age of forty years that Goethe
entered on the optimistic phase of his life. fr
1 The Fifth Roman Elegy, Blaze's French translation, 1873 p. 186.
Some of Goethe's biographers, and amongst them G. H. Lewes, maintain
that these lines relate to Christine, Goethe's xvife. This is erroneous ;
they refer to Faustine (see Bielschowsky, i, p. 517).
II
GOETHE AND OPTIMISM
Goethe's optimistic period His mode of life in that period
Influence of love in artistic production Inclinations towards
the arts must be regarded as secondary sexual characters
Senile love of Goethe Relation between genius and the
sexual activities
THE moral equilibrium of the great writer was not estab-
lished once for all. In the course of his life, Goethe had
several relapses into pessimism which, however, were ephe-
meral, and after which he became a man as complete and
harmonious as was possible in the circumstances of his life.
He reached a serene old age, and his activity did not relax
until after his eightieth year, when he died.
As I have already said, Goethe realised the value of life
in good time. Having become an optimist, he experienced
the joy of existence and coveted as much of it as possible.
When he was an old man, he declared that life, like the
Sibylline books, became more valuable the fewer of them
were left. There appeared in him a normal phase of human
nature. The conditions under which he lived, however,
were far from ideal. His health was indifferent. In his
youth he suffered from severe haemorrhage, probably tuber-
culous, and throughout his life he was subject to various
more or less serious maladies, such as gout, colic, nephritis,
and intestinal troubles. His habits were unwholesome. He
GOETHE AND OPTIMISM 271
was brought up in a region of vineyards, and in his youth
he acquired the habit of drinking wine in quantities cer-
tainly harmful. This he himself realised, and when he was
thirty-one years old, after he had acquired the instinct of
life, he gave it serious attention. " I wish I could abstain
from wine," he wrote in his note-book. Some weeks later
he wrote, " I now drink almost no wine." x
But he had not the strength of character to remain tem-
perate, and soon after his decision, he had fits of bleeding
at the nose, which he attributed to " having taken some
glasses of wine." 2 To his last day, he took wine regularly,
and sometimes to excess. J. H. Wolff, who dined with him
at Weimar, when he was in his eightieth year, was sur-
prised by his appetite and by the quantity of wine he
drank. "In addition to other food, he ate an enormous
portion of roast goose, and drank a bottle of red wine." 3
In Eckermann's interesting narrative of the last ten years
of Goethe's life (1822 1832) there is repeated mention of
wine. Goethe seized every occasion to drink it. Some-
times it was the visit of a stranger, sometimes a present of
some famous vintage. It was said that he drank from one
to two bottles of wine daily (Moebius). None the less, he
was convinced that wine was not good for intellectual work.
He had remarked that when his friend Schiller had drunk
more than usual, to increase his strength and stimulate his
literary activity, the result was deplorable. He said to
Eckermann (March 11, 1828), "He will ruin his health
and will spoil his work. That is why he has made the
faults the critics have pointed out." In another conversa-
tion (March u, 1828) he stated that what was written
1 Moebius' Goethe, vol. ii, pp. 84-87.
2 Moebius' Goethe, vol. ii, pp. 84-87.
3 Quoted by Bode in Goethe's Lebenskunst, Berlin, 1905, p. 59.
272 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
under the influence of wine was abnormal and forced, and
ought to be deleted.
Love was the great stimulus of Goethe's genius. The
love affairs, the histories of which fill his biography, are
well known. Many have been shocked by them; others
have tried to justify them. It has been suggested that his
disposition made it necessary for him to impart his ideas
and obtain sympathy for them, and that his love for women
was the expression of a purely artistic feeling and had
nothing in common with the ordinary passion.
The truth is that artistic genius and perhaps all kinds of
genius are closely associated with sexual activity. I agree
with the proposition formulated by Dr. Moebius 1 that
"artistic proclivities are probably to be regarded as
secondary sexual characters." Just as the beard and some
other male characters are developed as means of attracting
the female sex, so also bodily strength, strong voice and
many of the talents must be regarded as due to the need to
fulfil the sexual relations. In primitive conditions woman
worked more than man ; man's superior force served him
principally in fighting with other males, the object of the
combats usually being possession of a woman. Just as a
victorious combatant covets the presence of a woman as
witness of his prowess, so an orator speaks better in the
presence of a woman to whom he is devoted. Singers and
poets are stimulated in their arts by the love they awaken.
Poetic genius is intimately associated with sexual power
and castration inhibits it. Just as castrated animals retain
their physical strength, but become changed in character,
losing in particular their combative nature, so a man of
genius loses much of his quality with the sexual function.
Amongst the eunuchs on record, Abelard is the only poet,
1 Ueber die Wirkungen d. Castration, Halle, 1903, p. 82.
GOETHE AND OPTIMISM 273
but Abelard was forty years old when he ceased to be a
man, and at the same time he ceased to be a poet. Many
singers have been eunuchs, but they have been merely
executants, and have taken no part in musical creation.
Some musical composers have been eunuchs, but these
were of mediocre ability and their names have been for-
gotten. When castration has taken place at an early age,
it has a much more powerful influence in modifying the
secondary sexual characters.
From the point of view of a naturalist, I cannot agree
with the moralists who have blamed Goethe for his sexu-
ality, nor do I share the views of those defenders of him
who have wished to deny the facts or to explain them away
by the suggestion that they did not relate to sexual love.
Extracts from the Roman Elegies show quite clearly
what was the nature of Goethe's love affairs. His feelings
towards the Baroness von Stein have been taken as reveal-
ing merely idealistic love. But some of his letters to her
are clear evidence that their relations were erotic (Moebiirs,
Goethe, vol. ii, p. 89). The love which he bore for
Minna Herzlieb, the girl who inspired him to write Elec-
tive Affinities (Wahlverivandschaften), has been described
by Goethe himself in a poem so crudely erotic that it has
been impossible to publish it (Lewes, vol. ii, p. 314).
A fact to which I specially desire to call attention is that
Goethe's amorous temperament survived until the end of
his life, and all the world has been astonished by the vigour
of his poetic genius in extreme old age.
Goethe has been the subject of derision because at the
age of seventy-four years he fell deeply in love with UlriquQ.
de Lewetzow, who was quite a young girl. This incident,
however, merits close attention as it is a typical case of
senile love in a man of genius.
T
274 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Whilst he was at Carlsbad, Goethe became acquainted
with a pretty girl seventeen years old, with beautiful blue
eyes, brown hair, and of an ardent, good-humoured and
happy disposition. In the first two seasons nothing in
particular happened. But in the third summer, at Marien-
bad, Goethe became passionately enamoured of Ulrique,
who was then nineteen years old and in the full bloom of
her young womanhood. His love made him young again;
he passed long hours with her and took to dancing with
her. " I am quite certain," he wrote to his son, "that it
is many years since I have enjoyed such health of body
and mind" (Aug. 30, 1823). His passion became so
serious that the Grand Duke of Saxe- Weimar, on behalf
of his friend, made a formal proposal of marriage for
Mademoiselle de Lewetzow. The mother gave an evasive
answer, and the matter rested in suspense for long, and
ended in a refusal. Goethe withdrew to his family, but
encountered there strong opposition to his project of
marriage.
This misadventure troubled the old poet so seriously that
he fell ill. He suffered from pain in the region of the heart
and from profound mental disturbance. He complained to
Eckermann " that he could do nothing, that he could get to
work on nothing, and that his mind had lost its power."
" I can no longer work," he said. " I cannot even read,
and it is only in rare and fortunate moments that I can
think, feeling myself partially soothed " (Eckermann, Nov.
16, 1823). Eckermann makes the following reflection on
the state of mind of the great old man. "His trouble
seems to be not merely physical. The passionate desire
which he acquired for a young lady at Marienbad this
summer, and against which he is still struggling, must be
regarded as the chief cause of his illness " (Nov. 17, 1823).
GOETHE AND OPTIMISM 275
As in all earlier crises, Goethe sought consolation in
poetry and love. He left Marienbad in a carriage and
began to set down verses astonishingly vigorous for so old
a man. His Marienbad elegy is held to be one of the best
of his poetical achievements. The following extracts will
give an idea of his state of mind at that period.
" I am lost in unconquerable desire; there is nothing left
but everlasting tears. Let them flow, let them flow unceas-
ingly. But they can never extinguish the fire that burns
me. My heart rages; it is torn in pieces, this heart where
life and death meet in a horrible combat." "I have lost
the universe, I have lost myself, I who until now have been
the favourite of the gods ; they have put me to the question,
they offered me Pandora, rich in treasure and still richer in
perilous seductions ; they made me drunken with the kisses
of her mouth, which gave me its sweets; they have torn
me from her arms, and have struck me with death."
Goethe concealed his elegy for some time, guarding it as
something sacred, but eventually handed it over to Ecker-
mann. Poetic creation soothed his mind only for a time.
His nature demanded some more efficacious consolation. A
few weeks after the separation he began to complain bitterly
of the absence of the Countess Julie von Egloffstein, whom
he wanted very much. "She cannot know what she is
keeping from me and what she makes me lose, nor can
she know how I love her and how she engrosses my
mind." He derived a little comfort from the visits of
Madame Szymanowska, whom he admired "not only as a
great artist, but as a pretty woman " (Eckermann, Nov. 3,
1823). " I am deeply grateful to this charming woman,"
he said to the chancellor, " for her beauty, her sweetness,
and her art have soothed my passionate heart " (Bode, p.
151). He also renewed his relations with Marianne Jung,
276 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the retired actress and dancer. "When Goethe had to
turn his thoughts from Ulrique, the image of the pretty
owner of Gerbermuhle again occupied his mind. A visit
to her, and intimate correspondence with her, restored peace
to his heart so greedy of love" (Bielschowsky, vol. ii,
p. 487).
His devotion to Ulrique was Goethe's last acute attack of
love ; but until the end of his days he felt the need of being
surrounded by pretty women. As director of the theatre,
he came in contact with many young women who wished
engagements. He confessed to Eckermann that he required
much strength of mind to resist feminine charms which
tempted him to be unjustly favourable to the prettiest of
those who sought employment. " If I allowed myself to
fall into an intrigue of gallantry, I would become like a de-
magnetised needle as soon as the girl found a real lover "
(Eckermann, March 22, 1825).
His daughter-in-law's sister has related that Goethe liked
to have young girls in his study whilst he was at work.
They had to sit quietly, neither working nor talking, often
a difficult task for them (Bode, p. 155).
Even on the last day of his life, whilst in delirium, he
cried out, "What a pretty woman's head with black curls
on a black ground " (Lewes, vol. ii, p. 372). After utter-
ing several other more or less incoherent phrases, he drew
his last breath.
The facts which I described in the chapter of this book
dealing with old age have made clear how long
sexuality persists in men. As the testes resist atrophy
better than other organs, and even in extreme old age still
form active spermatozoa, it is natural that their condition
should be reflected on the organism generally, and that feel-
ings of love should still be excited. If by some accident
GOETHE AND OPTIMISM 277
Goethe had become a eunuch early in life, he would have
been a different being. The moralists who have been
shocked by his amorous intrigues would have been satis-
fied, but the world would have lost a great poet. More-
over, Goethe is no exceptional case amongst writers. The
temperament of Victor Hugo and his devotion to women up
to the end of his days are well known. More recently, after
the death of Ibsen, a profound sensation was made by the
revelation of his love for Mademoiselle Bardach, who in-
spired his genius during the last period of his life.
Not only poetic creation but other forms of genius are
intimately associated with the sexual function. The philo-
sopher Schopenhauer, who was no ascetic, wrote as follows,
at the age of twenty-five, when he was in full creative
activity, " In the days and at the hours when the voluptu-
ous instinct is strongest, when it is a burning covetousness,
it is then that the greatest forces of the mind and the greatest
stores of knowledge are ready for the most intense activity."
"At such moments life is truly at its strongest and most
active, for its two poles are then operating most actively ;
and this is plain in the man of the highest intelligence. In
these hours one sees more than in years of passivity "
(quoted in Moebius' Schopenhauer, p. 55). " This means
that in Schopenhauer intellectual creation was linked with
erotic excitement " (ibid., p. 57).
It was facts of such a nature that led Brown-Sequard to
his idea of strengthening cerebral activity by injections of
the substance of testes. To obtain the same effect, he pre-
scribed another means, the value of which was proved in
the case of two individuals aged from forty-five to fifty
years, the observations being continued over several years.
"By my advice," he said, "when these had to perform
any great physical or intellectual work, they got themselves
278 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
into a condition of sexual excitement." " The testes being
in this way thrown into functional activity, there was soon
produced the desired increase in the power of the nerve
centres." 1
Although I insist on the existence of a close relation
between intellectual activity and the sexual function, I do
not mean to assert that there have not existed exceptions
to the rule.
Now that I have described certain important factors in
the genius of Goethe, I shall pass on to a study of his state
of mind in the last period of his life, the splendour and
harmony of which have been so often admired.
1 Comptes rendus de la Socitte de Biologic, 1889, p. 420.
Ill
GOETHE'S OLD AGE
Old age of Goethe Physical and intellectual vigour of the
old man Optimistic conception of life Happiness in life
in his last period
DRINKERS of wine may take the case of Goethe as an argu-
ment against temperance. Although he was not healthy in
his youth, his large consumption of wine did not prevent
him from enjoying an old age full of force and intellectual
work. Eckermann, who was his intimate and constant
companion in the last ten years of his life, was never weary
of expressing his surprise and delight at the physical and
moral vigour of the distinguished old man. He found
Goethe on his return to Jena, at the age of seventy-four, in a
condition " very pleasant to see ; he was in good health and
robust, so that he could walk for hours " (Sept. 15, 1823).
His eyes were "brilliant and clear and his whole expres-
sion was that of joy, vigour and youth" (Oct. 29). In
walks with Eckermann, Goethe forced the pace and showed
strength which rilled his companion with delight (March,
1824). His voice was full of character and of force (March
30, 1824), and every word showed his vitality (July 9,
1827).
In a conversation that Eckermann had with Goethe when
the latter was seventy-nine years old " the sound of his
voice and the fire in his eyes were of such strength as would
280 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
have been normal in the full flush of youth" (Mar. 11,
1828). Such characters were preserved until the end of the
life of the great man, and a few months before his death
Eckermann jotted in his book that he saw him every day in
full vigour and freshness, looking as if his health might be
prolonged indefinitely (Dec. 21, 1831). In the beginning of
the following spring, Goethe caught a feverish cold, pos-
sibly pneumonic, and died, probably from weakness of the
heart. His illness lasted a week. If he had not been a
drinker of wine he would have been able to withstand this
attack and to live still longer.
The intellectual vigour of Goethe was even greater and
more remarkable than his physical strength. His interests
were extremely wide, and his thirst for knowledge was
never appeased. Once, when he was absorbed by the in-
terest of hearing d'Alton describe in detail the skeleton of
rodents, Eckermann states his surprise that a man not far
short of eighty years old " did not give up seeking for and
gaining knowledge." But in these matters he never lost his
interest. He wished always to go further and further,
always to learn, so showing himself to be a man of eternal
and undying youth (April 16, 1825). Goethe's aptitude for
understanding and his memory were most unusual. When
he was more than eighty, he surprised those who heard
him " by the incessant flow of his ideas and by his extra-
ordinary fertility in invention " (Oct. 7, 1828).
" The old age of Goethe is the most striking proof of the
extreme force of his constitution," said his medical bio-
grapher, Dr. Moebius. Works which were written in his
last years are for the most part beyond praise, both because
of their finished form, and by their wisdom and feeling.
What other man of eighty has written anything of the
same character? From the physiological point of view I
GOETHE'S OLD AGE 281
am more surprised at his works when he was old than at those
of his youthful activity" (Moebius, Goethe, i, 200, 201).
Although Goethe's character, which was fiery and intense
in his youth, became much more calm with age, there still
came to him moments when he was carried away. He had
certain eccentricities of an old man, and in particular was
often very despotic, and this trait has been the occasion of
many stories. His temper, however, became much more
certain in his old age, and his general conceptions much
more optimistic. Apart from certain short crises, he was
happy in his life. In 1828, he settled down at Dornburg
and there passed a tranquil existence. " I stay out of
doors nearly all day and engage in private conversations
with the tendrils of the vine which communicate their
excellent ideas to me, ideas about which I shall have
marvellous things to tell you " he wrote to Eckermann on
June 15, 1828 " I am composing verses which are quite
good, and I hope that it will be given to me to live long
in this condition. I am quite contented," he said to his
collaborator, "at the beginning of spring, when I see the
first green leaves, I am pleased to watch how, from week
to week, one leaf after another appears on the stem. I am
delighted in May, when I see a flower-bud ; I feel really
happy, when in June the rose offers to me its splendour and
its perfume" (Eckermann, April 27, 1825). His delight
in life at this epoch is also revealed in many letters. " I
wish to whisper this in your ear," he wrote to Zelter on
April 29, 1830. "I am delighted to find that even at
my great age, ideas come to me the pursuit and de-
velopment of which w r ould require a second life."
His conception of life had changed enormously since the
epoch of Werther. Goethe himself said: "When one is
old, one thinks many things about this world quite
different from when one was young " (Eckermann, Dec..
282 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
1829). The youthful sensitiveness which had brought him
so much suffering was notably dulled. Eckermann was
astonished at the way he accepted wounds to his pride. It
happened that his design for the new theatre at Weimar
was abandoned while it was being constructed, and re-
placed by another not his own work. Eckermann was
much disturbed by this, and went to see Goethe in a state
of apprehension. "I was afraid," he said, "that so un-
expected a step would profoundly wound Goethe. Well,
there was nothing of the sort; I found him in the best of
tempers, quite calm, absolutely above all feelings in the
matter." When he had reached his eighty-fourth year,
Goethe had no weariness of life. In his last illness, he
showed not the smallest desire to die. He expected to get
better, and thought that the approach of summer would re-
store his strength. The desire to live was strong in him.
None the less, he recognised that his cycle of life was
finished, and although he had no weariness of life, he felt a
kind of satisfaction that life was over. " When, like me, a
man has lived eighty years," he said, "he has hardly the
right to live, but ought to be ready every day to die, and to
think of putting his house in order" (Eckermann, May
i5> 1831). None the less, he continued his work, in par-
ticular revising the last two chapters of the second part of
Faust. When he had finished them, Goethe was extremely
pleased. "I can consider," he said, "any days which
come to me yet as a real gift, as it is a matter of no moment
if I write anything more or what such work should be "
(Eckermann, June i, 1831).
Goethe gave Faust one hundred years of life, and it is
probable that he thought of that period as his own span.
Although he did not reach it, he approached it, after
having lived a most active life, full of most valuable lessons
for posterity.
IV
GOETHE AND " FAUST "
Faust the biography of Goethe The three monologues
in the first Part Faust's pessimism The brain-fatigue
which finds a remedy in love The romance with Mar-
guerite and its unhappy ending
" GOETHE was Faust, Faust Goethe," said the biographer
of the great poet (Bielschowsky, vol. ii, p. 645). Most
people admit that in Faust Goethe gave his auto-
biography on a more detailed scale than in Werther.
Why then should I follow my analysis of Goethe himself,
which was based on exact facts, with an analysis of Faust ?
I do so because in addition to the biographical details in
Faust, there are many ideas which illuminate the poet's
conception of life. Goethe's life explains Faust, and
Faust explains the soul of its author. And I am con-
vinced that an accurate study of so great a man is of high
importance in the investigation of human nature.
The two Parts of Faust correspond with two distinct
periods in Goethe's life. In the first Part, Faust was pes-
simistic, in the second optimistic. Although many of the
high problems that occupy humanity are raised and dis-
cussed in Faust, love is the centre on which the drama
turns.
In the first Part, conceived and for the most part written
284 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
during his youth, the chief theme is the love of a young
man for a pretty and attractive girl towards whom the hero
acts in a fashion opposed to conventional morality. As in
most of his principal works, Goethe has made an episode in
his own life the basis of Faust. It is the well-known
story of Frederique, the daughter of a clergyman, for whom
the brilliant young author conceived a violent passion and
who returned his affection with a deeper and more enduring
feeling. Goethe was alarmed at the possibility of definitely
settling his future, and deserted the poor victim of love in
an unfortunate state. Later on, he confessed to the Baroness
von Stein that he had abandoned Frederique at a time
when his desertion was likely to cause the death of the poor
girl. " I had wounded to the quick," he wrote (Bielschow-
sky, vol. i, p. 135), "the best heart in the world, and I
had to repent of it long and almost unendurably." As an
atonement, he made Frederique the heroine of " Goetz "
and of " Clavigo," but not thinking these worthy of her,
he immortalised her as the Marguerite of Faust.
A learned doctor, skilled in all human knowledge, but
who had found no satisfaction in his studies, found consola-
tion in the beauty and charm of a young girl with whom
he fell passionately in love. It will be interesting to trace
the psychological process which induced him to leave the
scene of his scientific studies tor the streets and resorts
where he found Marguerite.
Although Faust was represented as an old man, who had
had time enough to absorb all human learning, his image
bears the stamp of green youth. " Discontented with all
his knowledge, he wished to know the secret entrails of the
world, to be a witness of the centre of all activity, to unveil
the principle of life." l These are the demands of a young
1 The word Samen of the original is the expression of the alchemists
for the " principle of life."
GOETHE AND "FAUST" 285
man seeking to resolve the most intricate problems at one
stroke. The speech in question dates from the period of
Werther, when Goethe was twenty-five years old, and
for that reason leaves no- very serious impression. 1 The
second monologue, which ends with the attempt to take
poison, is later, and is absent in the edition of 1790 (Frag-
ment). It was revised when Goethe had reached his
fiftieth year, and displays a riper maturity. Although
lacking exactness, it depicts in an interesting fashion the
miseries of life.
Some alien substance more and more is cleaving
To all the mind conceives of grand and fair ;
When this world's Good is won by our achieving,
The Better, then, is named a cheat and snare.
The fine emotions, whence our lives we mould,
Lie in the earthly tumult dumb and cold.
If hopeful Fancy once, in daring flight,
Her longings to the Infinite expanded,
Yet now a narrow space contents her quite,
Since Time's wild wave so many a fortune stranded.
Care at the bottom of the heart is lurking;
Her secret pangs in silence working,
She, restless, rocks herself, disturbing joy and rest;
In newer masks her face is ever drest,
By turns as house and land, as wife and child, presented,
As water, fire, as poison, steel ;
We dread the blows we never feel,
And what we never lose is yet by us lamented.
Fear of the evils which lie in wait for us and against
which we can make no provision render life insupportable.
Faust's frame of mind as described in these lines recalls
Schopenhauer, who was always afraid of something ; fear,
sometimes of thieves, sometimes of diseases, tormented
1 Erich Schmidt, Goethe's Faust in urspritnglicher Gestalt, 6th edit.,
Weimar, 1905, p. i.
2 Faust, Bayard Taylor's translation. London : Warne & Co.,
pp. 20-21.
286 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
him. He would never go to a barber's to be shaved, and
always carried his own drinking cup with him.
"Is it not better to end such a life, and to kill oneself,
even if it mean annihilation?" asked Faust. He took up
the poisoned goblet and put it to his lips, but, arrested by
singing and the sound of bells outside, he refrained, and
life laid hold of him. Not religious faith, however, but
memories of childhood, "the happy sports of youth and
the gay festivals of spring " were the agencies that recalled
Faust to the earth. He went out of doors, mingled with
the crowd, tried to amuse himself amongst men, and
savoured the beauty of the new-born spring, but all these
could not make him forget the evil of life. He met his
pupil, talked with him, and again displayed his pessimism.
O happy he, who still renews
The hope, from Error's deeps to rise for ever !
That which one does not know, one needs to use;
And what one knows, one uses never. 1
Then follows the celebrated monologue of Faust over
which so many commentators have lost their heads and
wasted oceans of ink.
Two souls, alas ! reside within my breast,
And each withdraws from, and repels, its brother.
One with tenacious organs holds in love
And clinging lust the world in its embraces;
The other strongly sweeps, this dust above,
Into the high ancestral spaces. 2
On this passage has been built up a whole theory of
"double natures" with which has been incorporated the
dualism of Manicheism, the two natures of Christ and what
not besides. 3
1 Op '/., p. 32.
2 Op. at., pp. 33, 34.
3 Details of this will be found in Kuno Fischer's Goethe's Faust,
PP. 328-330.
GOETHE AND "FAUST" 287
There exists in literature no better expression of human
disharmony than this monologue " of the two souls." It
portrays the unbalanced condition so frequent in youth and
is a valuable indication of the real youth of Faust.
On his return to his study, Faust again revealed his
pessimism.
But ah ! I feel, though will thereto be stronger,
Contentment flows from out my breast no longer.
Why must the stream so soon run dry and fail us,
And burning thirst again assail us?
Therein I Ve borne so much probation ! 1
It is at this point that Faust addresses the Spirit " that
denies " and that is called " sin " and " evil." This spirit
invokes before his eyes "the fairest images of dreams,"
that is to say, a woman's body in its beautiful nudity. Faust
declares himself
Too old to play with passion,
Too young to be without desire. 2
Pursued by desire
.... when night descends, how anxiously
Upon my couch of sleep I lay me.
There, also, comes no rest to me;
But some wild dream is sent to fray me. 3
So that
Death is desired, and Life a thing unblest.
O fortunate, for whom, when victory glances,
The bloody laurels on the brow he bindeth !
Whom, after rapid, maddening dances,
In clasping maiden-arms he findeth ! 4
Faust thus reached the ecstasy of passion. Soon after-
wards in the Witches' kitchen, he saw in a mirror a
" heavenly form " and cried :
O lend me, Love, the swiftest of thy pinions,
And bear me to her beauteous field.
1 Op. tit., p. 36. 2 Op. tit., p. 45
3 Op. tit., p. 46. * Oi>. tit., p. 46.
288 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
A woman's form, in beauty shining!
Can woman, then, so lovely be?
And must I find her body, there reclining;
Of all the heavens, the bright epitome?
Can Earth with such a thing be mated? l
Discontent with life, sense of the insufficiency of human
knowledge and the most gloomy pessimism lead to the
passion of love which, eventually, after many devious paths,
throws Faust into the arms of Marguerite. The story is one
of the world's great romances and everyone knows it.
Faust all unconsciously was following the prescription of
Brown-Sequard. Brain-fatigue had made the continuation
of the study which caused it impossible. The condition is
plainly stated in the following lines :
The thread of Thought at last is broken,
And knowledge brings disgust unspoken.
Let us the sensual deeps explore. 2
The brain has refused to work, and blind instinct, in the
guise of dreams, whispers that there is in the organism
something that can restore the intellectual forces. This
something, however, is what is called sin, and much
courage is needed to plunge into it. Without this evil,
life cannot last. Faust has to choose between love and
death, and chooses love.
The end of the romance of Goethe and Frederique was
bad, and that of Faust and Marguerite was still worse. The
poet painted it in the most sombre colours. Marguerite
killed her child, poisoned her mother, became crazy, and
was beheaded. Faust's cup of misery was filled to the
brim ; he blamed his evil genius, he made desperate efforts
to save the poor woman, and cried "O that I had never
been born."
To sum up : in the first Part, Faust is a young, learned
man who expects too much from science and life, and whose
1 Op. at., p. 71. 2 Op. cit., p. 51.
GOETHE AND "FAUST" 289
genius requires extra-conjugal love as a stimulant; he is
unbalanced and inevitably pessimistic. It is not surprising
that his life goes badly, and that his conduct leaves him
much to repent of. But although, at first, a vague general
discontent nearly drives him to suicide, later on the terrible
evil which he had wrought on a poor creature he loved pas-
sionately did no more than plunge him into misery that
was bitter but far from mortal. His mind had developed
far in the direction of optimism. The crisis through which
he passed, serious as it was, ended by his return to a life of
great activity and enterprise.
THE OLD AGE OF FAUST
The second Part of Faust is in the main a description of
senile love Amorous passion of the old man Humble atti-
tude of the old Faust Platonic love for Helena The old
Faust's conception of life His optimism The general idea
of the play
THE first Part of Faust was acclaimed by the world almost
as soon as it appeared, but the second Part met a very
cold reception. Everyone knows and reads the first Part;
the second Part has few readers, and these chiefly poets and
dramatists. No doubt it has more effect on the stage than
when it is read, but this is due to subsidiary features in
which it resembles a fine ballet. There is general agree-
ment that the real meaning of the second Part is obscure,
complex and difficult to interpret. Many literary critics
have racked their brains in the effort to discover the
author's central idea. When Eckermann, who per-
suaded Goethe to revise and finish the second Part,
asked what was the meaning of some of the scenes in
it, Goethe evaded the question and played the sphinx.
Thus, with regard to the famous " mothers " Goethe
answered, with a mysterious air: "You have the manu-
script ; study it, and see what you can make of it " (January
10, 1830). G. H. Lewes, although one of Goethe's most
resolute admirers, admitted the impossibility of grasping
THE OLD AGE OF FAUST 291
the sense of the second Part. The Wanderjahre and the
second Part of Faust were arsenals of symbols, and it
pleased the old poet to see acute critics labouring to inter-
pret them whilst he was silent and refused to help them.
Lewes thought that Goethe, so far from showing the
smallest wish to clear up their difficulties, took a pleasure in
giving them new problems to puzzle over. Lewes himself
thought that the second Part was poor in idea and execu-
tion, and admitted that he had failed after repeatedly trying
to get a conception of it that would reveal its beauties. In
writing about it, he contented himself with giving a sum-
mary of it. Now this second Part, although its general lines
had been laid down for long, was actually written during
several years in the last period of the poet's life. The fact
that it was composed out of the regular sequence of the
Acts and Scenes gives us an important clue. The third Act
and then the second Part of the fifth Act were put OR paper
first. Next followed the first Act and part of the second;
the classical Walpurgis night was written in 1830, the
fourth Act in 1831, and last of all the beginning of the fifth
Act.
As the second Part of Faust is a crowded motley, con-
taining many subjects, obviously of minor importance,
such as the volcanic theory of the earth and the disquisition
on paper-money, the key-note may be found in the portions
which were first composed. Now Act III. contains the
story of Helena, and the second part of Act V. Faust's
activity for the general welfare.
Setting out from the conception that the works of Goethe
reflect the acts and incidents of his own life, I shall try to'
explain on that basis the meaning of the most obscure of
his writings.
I have already stated that love was the stimulus of
u 2
292 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Goethe's activity in youth and age ; it is the scarlet thread
running through his history. There was no difficulty in
his using his love for Frederique as material for a play ; that
a young man should love a young girl was natural enough.
The story of an old man enamoured of a young beauty was
quite another matter. It was said that one of the reasons
that prevented his marriage with Ulrique de Lewetzow was
the fear of ridicule (Lewes, op. cit., ii, p. 345), a fear that
plays a large part in human affairs. It is easy to under-
stand that the old poet was in a difficulty when he came to
write of senile love. Faust's love for Helena was not that
of a supposed old man who became young by doffing his
beard and changing his cloak, but of a real old man whom
no mystery nor magic was to make young again. And yet
old Faust's love was a true passion, and Goethe has written
no finer lines than those describing it.
When the second Part begins, Faust has passed through
the terrible crisis of the first Part. Wearied and restless,
he seeks a new mode of life.
Life's pulses now with fresher force awaken
To greet the mild ethereal twilight o'er me;
This night, thou, Earth ! hast also stood unshaken,
And now thou breathest, new-refreshed before me,
And now beginnest, all thy gladness granting,
A vigorous resolution to restore me,
To seek that higher life for which I'm panting. 1
The invoked image of the most beautiful woman in the
history of the world transforms Faust's desire of love into
an overwhelming passion.
Have I still eyes? Deep in my being springs
The fount of Beauty, in a torrent pouring !
A heavenly gain my path of terror brings.
The world was void, and shut to my exploring,
1 Op. cit., p. 151.
THE OLD AGE OF FAUST 293
And, since my priesthood, how hath it been graced 1
Enduring 'tis, desirable, firm-based.
And let my breath of being blow to waste,
If I for thee unlearn my sacred duty !
The form, that long erewhile my fancy captured,
That from the magic mirror so enraptured,
Was but a frothy phantom of such beauty !
'Tis Thou, to whom the stir of all my forces,
The essence of my passion's courses,
Love, fancy, worship, madness, here I render. 1
In the throes of this passion, Faust is tortured by jealousy
when he sees the lovely woman clinging to and kissing a
young man. He desires her at all costs.
Am I nothing here? To stead me,
Is not this key still shining in my hand?
Through realms of terror, wastes and waves it led me,
Through solitudes, to where I firmly stand,
Here foothold is ! Realities here centre !
The strife with spirits here the mind may venture,
And on its grand, its double lordship enter!
How far she was, and nearer, how divine 1
I'll rescue her and make her doubly mine.
Ye Mothers ! Mothers ! Crown this wild endeavour I
Who knows her once must hold her, and for ever. 2
The disappearance of the beautiful woman so moved
Faust that he fainted and fell into a prolonged sleep. As
soon as he recovered consciousness he asked : " Where is
she? " and set out to seek for her. When he learned that
Chiron had already carried off Helena on his back Faust
cried out :
Her didst thou bear?
Chiron: This back she pressed.
Faust: Was I not wild enough, before;
And now such seat, to make me blest 1
O, I scarcely dare l% .
To trust my senses! tell me more!
She is my only aspiration !
Whence didst thou bear her to what shore ? 2
1 Op. at., p. 203. 2 Op. cit. p. 205. 3 Op. tit., p. 230.
294 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Thou saw'st her once; to-day I saw her beam,
The dream of Beauty, beautiful as Dream !
My soul, my being, now is bound and chained;
I cannot live, unless she be attained. 1
Chiron found this attitude of passionate emotion so strange
that he advised Faust to take care of his health.
After many wanderings and difficulties Faust again met
the woman he coveted and spoke to her as follows :
What else remains, but that I give to thee
Myself, and all I vainly fancied mine?
Let me, before thy feet, in fealty true,
Thee now acknowledge, Lady, whose approach
Won thee at once possession and the throne ! 2
This language, so very different from what the same man
had formerly addressed to Marguerite, is much more like
that of an old lover to a young beauty whom he admires.
When Helena invited Faust to sit on the throne beside her,
he replied :
First, kneeling, let the dedication be
Accepted, lofty Lady ! Let me kiss
The gracious hand that lifts me to thy side.
Confirm me as co-regent of thy realm,
Whose borders are unknown, and win for thee
Guard, slave and worshipper, and all in one ! 3
The old man in the throes of a passion so great that he
was wholly absorbed by it did not dare to address the
beloved woman except in the most humble terms.
Helena made no declaration of love, but was complacent
to him, and when Faust suggested : " Now let our throne
become a bower unblighted," Helena agreed to follow him
to a secluded and green bower. There they remained alone
for some time, cared for by an old servant.
The result of this union was not a child like that to which
Marguerite gave birth and afterwards killed. It was a
1 Op- tit., p. 231. 2 Op. tit., p. 284. 3 Op. at., p. 287.
THE OLD AGE OF FAUST 295
strange and peculiar being ; a boy who immediately after
his birth began to leap about and to alarm his parents by
the activity of his movements.
Although Goethe preserved an obstinate silence when he
was asked to explain many of the scenes in the second Part,
he had no hesitation in explaining the significance of this
astonishing child. " The child was not a human being but
an allegory, in which was personified poetry, which is not
bound to any time, to any place, or to any person " (Ecker-
mann, December 20, 1829). Struck by the tragic fate of
Byron, Goethe made the son of Faust and Helena a symbol
of the English poet.
Literary critics, setting out from the categorical explana-
tion of Goethe himself, have declared that the union of
Faust and Helena was meant to denote the alliance of
romanticism and classicism, a marriage from which was
born modern poetry, personified in its highest representa-
tive, Byron. This, however, cannot be the idea of Goethe,
who himself was far from an enthusiast about classicism
and romanticism. "What," he said, "is all this noise
about the classic and the romantic ? The essential thing is
that'a piece of work should be wholly good and serious;
then it will also be classic " (Eckermann, October 17, 1828).
It is much more probable that Goethe intended poetry to
spring from the relations between the old Faust and his
adorable companion, relations of a kind to be included in
so-called platonic love. Such love inspires the creation of
perfect work even in an old poet, when he is stimulated by
a beautiful woman.
When Faust and Helena emerged from the grotto with
their son, Helena said :
Helena: Love, in human wise to bless us,
In a noble pair must be;
296 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
But divinely to possess us,
It must form a precious Three.
Faust : All we seek has therefore found us ;
I am thine and thou art mine !
So we stand as love hath bound us;
Other fortune we resign. 1
After the death of her son, Helena abandoned Faust,
leaving him her garments :
Helena : Also in me, alas I an old word proves its truth,
That Bliss and Beauty ne'er enduringly unite.
Torn is the link of Life, no less than that of Love;
So, both lamenting, painfully I say : Farewell !
And cast myself again, once only, in thine arms. 1
After this crisis the old Faust sought to console himself
in the bosom of nature, just as after the terrible catastrophe
with Marguerite the contemplation of nature had given him
the strength to live. On this occasion he reached the sum-
mit of a high mountain from which he watched the chang-
ing vapours of a cloud which seemed to him to assume the
form of female beauty. But Faust was old, and now saw
only memories of love. He cried out :
Yes ! mine eyes not err !
On sun-illumined pillows beauteously reclined,
Colossal, truly, but a godlike woman-form,
I see! The like of Juno, Leda, Helena,
Majestically lovely, floats before my sight I
Ah 1 now 'tis broken 1 Towering broad and formlessly,
It rests along the east like distant icy hills,
And shapes the grand significance of fleeting days.
Yet still the-e clings a light and delicate band of mist
Around my breast and brow, caressing, cheering me.
Now light, delaying, it soars and higher soars,
And folds together. Cheats me an ecstatic form,
As early-youthful, long-foregone and highest bliss?
The first glad treasures of my deepest heart break forth ;
Aurora's love, so light of pinion, is its type,
The swiftly-felt, the first, scarce-comprehended glance,
Outshining every treasure, when retained and held.
1 Op. cit., p 298. Op. tit., p. 305.
THE OLD AGE OF FAUST 297
Like Spiritual Beauty mounts the gracious Form,
Dissolving not, but lifts itself through ether far,
And from my inner being bears the best away. 1
This state of mind resembles Goethe's condition after the
rupture with Ulrique.
Love and poetry alike were over for him. None the less
his craving for the higher life was not yet weakened. The
desire to live was still very strong in the old Faust. But
now he no longer as in the days of his youth dreamed of
an ideal which could not be attained. When Mephisto-
pheles asked him ironically :
Then might one guess whereunto thou hast striven?
Boldly-sublime it was, I'm sure.
Since nearer to the moon thy flight was driven,
Would now thy mania that realm secure?
Faust : Not so ! This sphere of earthly soil
Still gives us room for lofty doing.
Astounding plans e'en now are brewing :
I feel new strength for bolder toil. 2
Such optimistic language, extraordinarily different from
Faust's lamentations in the first Part, becomes still more
marked. When he was approaching his centenary he
made the following profession of faith :
I only through the world have flown :
Each appetite I seized as by the hair;
What not sufficed me, forth I let it fare,
And what escaped me, I let go.
I've only craved, accomplished my delight,
Then wished a second time, and thus with might
Stormed through my life : at first 'twas grand, completely,
But now it moves most wisely and discreetly.
The sphere of Earth is known enough to me ;
The view beyond is barred immutably :
A fool, who there his blinking eyes directeth,
And o'er his clouds of peers a place expecteth 1
Firm let him stand, and look around him well!
This World means something to the Capable.
Why needs he through Eternity to wend?
He here acquires what he can apprehend. 3
1 Op. at., p. 309. 2 Op. at., p. 313. 3 O p m dt ^ p< 35Ia
298 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
When he had reached the maturity of his wisdom,
Faust organised drainage works, the object of which was
to increase the area of land that could be utilised :
To many millions let me furnish soil,
Though not secure, yet free to active toil;
Green, fertile fields.
A land like Paradise here, round about.
Yes ! to this thought I hold with firm persistence ;
The last result of wisdom stamps it true :
He only earns his freedom and existence,
Who daily conquers them anew.
Thus here, by dangers girt, shall glide away
Of childhood, manhood, age, the vigorous day :
And such a throng I fain would see,
Stand on free soil among a people free !
Then dared I hail the Moment fleeing :
" Ah, still delay thou art so fair! "
The traces cannot, of mine earthly being,
In asons perish, they are there !
In proud fore-feeling of such lofty bliss,
I now enjoy the highest Moment, this ! l
These were the last words of the wise centenarian. It
has been said that they contain the quintessence of
Goethe's moral philosophy, and that they preach the sacri-
fice of the individual for the benefit of society. Lewes, for
instance, takes this view, holding that Faust was the ex-
position of a man who had conquered the vanity of in-
dividual aspirations and joys, and had come to the know-
ledge of the great truth that man must live for man, and
can find lasting happiness only in work for the benefit of
humanity. For my own part, it seems to me that according
to Goethe's Faust man must dedicate a large part of his
life to the complete development of his own individuality,
and that it is only in the second half of his life, when he
has grown wise by experience and feels satisfied as an
individual, that he should use his activity for the good of
1 op. tit., PP . 354-355-
THE OLD AGE OF FAUST 299
mankind. It was no part either of the ideas of Goethe or
of the nature of his work to preach the sacrifice of in-
dividuality.
Goethe was thus absorbed in Faust by the problem
of the conflict between certain actions and guiding prin-
ciples. The misdeeds of the hero in the first Part of his
life had to be redeemed. He said to Eckermann that " the
key to the salvation of Faust was to be found in the Angels'
Chorus " :
The noble spirit now is free,
And saved from evil scheming :
Whoe'er aspires unweariedly
Is not beyond redeeming. 1
However, that of which he did not speak, and which
none the less was most important in Faust and in Goethe
himself, is the action of love as a stimulant to artistic
creation, and it was probably to this that he referred at the
end of his tragedy. The mystical chorus sent up prayers
in a religious and erotic ecstasy, and their mysterious song
is:
The Indescribable, '
Here it is done;
The Woman-Soul leadeth us
Upward and on ! 2
Although these verses have been interpreted as love
which sacrifices or even love which leads to the grace of
God (Bode, p. 149), it is much more probable that it is
love for feminine beauty, a love which makes possible the
execution of wonderful things. Such an interpretation
agrees with the fact that the verses are spoken by a mystic
choir which speaks of the indescribable (das Unbeschreib-
liche) in which we must see the amorous passion of the
old man. In such an interpretation the whole of Faust
(and especially the second Part) is an eloquent pleading
1 Op. at., p. 365. 2 Op. tit., p. 370-
3 oo THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
for the importance of love in the higher activity of man,
in accordance with the law of human nature, which is a
much better justification of Goethe's conduct than all the
arguments of his interpreters and admirers.
I do not agree with the common idea that the two Parts
of Faust are two distinct works, but regard them as com-
plementary. In the first Part we see the young pessi-
mist, full of ardour and of desires, ready to make an end
of his days and stopping at nothing to satisfy his thirst
for love. In the second Part we have a mature old man
still loving women, but in a different way, a man who is
wise and optimistic, and who, having satiated the wants
of his individual life, dedicates the rest of his days to man-
kind, and who, having reached a century, dies extremely
happy, in fact almost exhibiting the instinct of natural
death.
PART IX
SCIENCE AND MORALITY
I
UTILITARIAN AND INTUITIVE MORALITY
Difficulty of the problem of morality Vivisection and anti-
vivisection Enquiry into the possibility of rational morality
Utilitarian and intuitive theories of morality Insufficiency
of these
IN the course of this book I have from time to time ap-
proached subjects closely related with the problem of
morality. For instance, in considering the prolongation
of human life, it was necessary to show that extension of
longevity far beyond the reproductive period of man in
no way is opposed to the principles of the highest morality,
although there exist races who find the sacrifice of old
people in harmony with their conception of morality.
Experimental biology, which lies at the root of most of
the doctrines exposed in this work, depends on vivisection
of animals. There are, however, very many persons who
regard it as immoral to operate on living animals when it
is not for the direct benefit of these. The attempts which
have been made in France and Germany to prevent or to
limit vivisection in laboratories have not succeeded, but
in England there is a severe law controlling operations on^
animals and submitting them to oppressive regulations to
which many of the scientific men in the country are opposed.
The question of experiments upon human beings is still
302 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
more delicate. Just as formerly the examination of a
human corpse could be made only in secret, so at the pre-
sent time, if the slightest experiment is to be made upon a
human being, it can be only by devious ways. People who
are hardly shocked at all at the numberless accidents caused
by automobiles and other means of transit, or in field
sports, make the strongest protest against any proposal
to try some new method of treatment upon a human
being.
A large number of people, amongst them even men of
science, regard as immoral any attempt to prevent the
spread of venereal diseases. Recently, in connection with
the investigations into the action of mercurial ointment as
a means of preventing syphilis, the members of the Faculty
of Medicine in France made a public protest, declaring
that it would be "immoral to let people think that they
could indulge in sexual vice without danger," and that it
was " wrong to give to the public a means of protection in
debauch." 1 None the less, other men of science, equally
serious, were convinced that they were performing an abso-
lutely moral work in attempting to find a prophylactic
against syphilis which would preserve many people, in-
cluding children and other innocent persons who, if no
preventive measures existed, would suffer from the terrible
disease.
Such examples show the reader what confusion exists
in the problem of morality. Although at every moment,
in every act of human conduct, the precepts of morality
must be reckoned with, even the most authoritative persons
are far from agreeing as to what rules to follow. About a
year ago in a Parisian journal 2 an enquiry into the subject
1 V. Tribune medicale, 1906, p. 449.
* La Revue, Nov. 1 5th and Dec. ist.
UTILITARIAN MORALITY 303
of rational morality was directed to distinguished authors.
The object was to discover if, at the present time, moral
conduct could be based not on religious dogma, which
binds only those who believe in it, but on rational prin-
ciples. The answers were most contradictory. Some
denied the possibility of rational morality, others admitted
it, but in very different fashions. Whilst one philosopher,
M. Boutroux, held that "morality must be founded on
reason and could have no other foundation," a poet, M.
Sully-Prudhomme, turned to feeling and conscience as the
basis of morality. According to him, " in the teaching of
morality, it is the heart and not the mind which is at
once master and pupil." In the contradictions which I
mentioned in the beginning of this chapter, these two
views appear. When antivivisectionists are protesting
against experiments on animals, they are inspired by sym-
pathy for poor creatures which cannot defend themselves.
Guided by conscience, they think immoral any suffering in-
flicted upon a living being for the benefit of another being,
whether human or animal. I know distinguished physio-
logists who have determined to limit their experiments to
animals with little sensibility, such as frogs. The great
majority of scientific men, however, would have no scruple
in opening bodies and subjecting their victims to severe
suffering in the hope of clearing up some scientific problem
which sooner or later would increase the happiness of
human beings and animals. If vivisection had not been per-
formed, or if it had been restricted, the great laws of infec-
tious diseases would not have been discovered, nor would
the discovery of many valuable remedies have been made.
To justify investigation, men of science set out from the
utilitarian theory of morality, which approves everything
that is useful to the human race. The antivivisectionists, on
3 o 4 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
the other hand, rely on the intuitive theory, according to
which conduct is controlled by the spontaneous activity of
our conscience.
In the case which I have selected the problem is easy to
solve. It is plain that vivisection is inevitable in the ex-
perimental investigation of vital processes, as it is the only
means by whch serious progress can be made. None the
less, very many people cannot accept this necessity,
because of the intensity of their love for animals.
In the question of the prevention of syphilis, the moral
problem is still more easy to settle. Whilst in the case of
vivisection a real suffering may be inflicted upon animals,
in preventive measures against syphilis, the evil is more
or less intricate and very problematic. The certainty of
safety from this disease might render extra-conjugal rela-
tions more frequent, but if we compare the evil which
might come from that with the immense benefit gained in
preventing so many innocent persons from becoming dis-
eased, it is easy to see to which side the scale dips. The
indignation of those who protest against the discovery of
preventive measures can never either arrest the zeal of the
investigators or hinder the use of the measures. This
example again shows that reasoning is necessary in the
solution of most moral questions.
However, the problems which arise in actual life are
often very much more complicated than the two cases I
have taken as an introduction. It is easy to prove the
high utility of the work of vivisectors and of those who
are seeking means of preventing syphilis, whilst their
adversaries have nothing to invoke but their feelings. The
situation is quite different in many questions which border
on morality. The sexual life abounds in extremely diffi-
cult problems, in which it is almost impossible to deter-
UTILITARIAN MORALITY 305
mine what is right. Let me recall the vagaries in the life
of Goethe, whose great genius was so often in conflict with
the morality of his time. Was he wrong in giving up
Frederique and Lili from the fear that a permanent bond
would damage his poetic productivity ? Then there is the
moral question of the marriage of men affected with
syphilis, or other diseases which might influence the off-
spring. The problems of the continence of young people
before marriage, of prostitution and of means of prevent-
ing conception are without doubt questions of great im-
portance, the solution of which is extremely difficult from
the point of view of morality. Differences of opinion are
revealed in nearly everything relating to punishment.
The question of the death penalty is much in dispute
and requires numerous investigations of different kinds.
Statistics have been collected to give information as to the
utility or inutility of the death penalty. According to
some results, capital punishment does not diminish the
number of crimes, whilst according to others it has a real
preventive effect. Punishments less violent than death,
and particularly the punishments of children, are equally
troublesome, and schoolmasters have difficulty in finding
a solution.
The utilitarian theory of morality often finds it impos-
sible to prove the advantage of the conduct it prescribes,
and this the more because in many cases we do not exactly
know who is to profit by it. Is the utility of any par-
ticular act to be considered so far as it affects relatives,
members of the same religion, of the same country, or
of the same race, or all humanity ?
In face of these difficulties, many moral philosophers have
given up the utilitarian theory and declared for an intui-
tive theory. The basis of morality is to be found in a
x
3 o6 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
feeling innate in every man, a sort of social instinct urging
him to do good to his neighbour, and which, by the voice
of his own conscience, dictates how he ought to act much
more precisely than could be done by any comprehension
of the utility of his conduct.
It is certainly true that man is an animal living in society
because of his need for association with other human
beings. But whilst in the animal world the members of
societies are actuated by an instinct which is blind and
generally very precise, in man we find nothing of the kind.
The social instinct appears in him in endless variety. In
some of us love of neighbours is extremely highly
developed, so that some persons are only happy when
sacrificing themselves for the public good. They give all
that they have to the poor, and often die for some ideal
which is necessarily altruistic. Such examples are rare.
Many men, however, profess an affection for some of their
kind, devote themselves to their relations, their friends, or
their compatriots, and remain practically indifferent to all
others. Other individuals, again, have an even narrower
sphere of affection, and take advantage of their fellows,
either in their own interest or in that of their own family.
Still more rare are the really wicked persons who have no
love for anyone but themselves and who take pleasure in
doing harm to those about them. Notwithstanding this
diversity in the development of the social instinct, all men
have to live together.
If it were possible to know the inner motives of men,
these might be used as a basis for classifying conduct.
Those acts might be described as moral which were in-
spired by neighbourly love, and those as immoral the
motive of which was egoism. But it is seldom that the
real motives are discovered; they lie deep down in the
UTILITARIAN MORALITY 307
individual mind, sometimes unknown even to the man him-
self. We can nearly always harmonise our acts with the
dictates of our consciences and find reasons for the harm
we inflict upon others. It is only rare natures that possess
a conscience so delicate as to be always tormented lest they
are not doing good to their neighbours.
In the course of life, men are disposed to attribute bad
motives to their opponents. Such an attitude makes
criticism easier and panders to the common wish to speak
evil of one's neighbours. Notwithstanding the numerous
precedents for such an attitude amongst politicians and
journalists, it must be discarded from any serious study of
morality.
The motives and the conscience are elusive elements of
little use in any attempt to value human conduct. We
have to fall back on the consequences of action. Now it
is easy to show that the social instinct often leads to action
which is not good. It frequently happens that men, acting
with the highest and best intentions, do much harm.
Schopenhauer long ago pointed out that morality based on
sentiment is a mere caricature of real morality. Impelled
by the altruistic wish to do good, men often lavish unre-
flecting charity and do harm to others and to themselves.
In Timon of Athens Shakespeare depicted
A most incomparable man ; breathed, as it were,
To an untirable and continuate goodness,
and who gave away to the right and the left, creating
around him a cloud of parasites. He finally ruined him-
self and became a hopeless misanthrope. Shakespeare put,
his verdict in the mouth of Flavius :
Undone by goodness. Strange, unusual blood,
When man's worst sin is, he does too much good.
X 2
308 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
Morality, founded purely on sentiment, has inspired the
attacks on vivisectors which in all confidence spread evil
amongst men.
It is a surprising result of the great complexity of human
affairs, that society is sometimes better served by wicked
acts than by acts inspired by the most generous feelings.
Thus extremely rigorous measures of repression are often
more successful than the half-measures employed by
humane and charitable administrators.
The intuitive theory of morality has had no greater suc-
cess than utilitarianism. Even if the sentiment of society
were a true basis of moral conduct, it fails in actual practice.
On the other hand, although utility is the object of all
morality, it is in most cases so difficult to determine what is
really useful, that utilitarianism breaks down as the founda-
tion of morality.
We must look elsewhere for principles which can guide
us towards right conduct.
II
MORALITY AND HUMAN NATURE
Attempts to found morality on the laws of human nature
Kant's theory of moral obligation Some criticisms of the
Kantian theory Moral conduct must be guided by reason
EVEN in antiquity, there were efforts to find a basis for
morality other than the precepts of religion based on revela-
tion, but the failure of such attempts has long been ad-
mitted. In the first chapter of The Nature of Man, I
described such efforts to find a basis for morality in human
nature itself. The Epicureans and the Stoics, although
their doctrines were opposed, each claimed to set out from
human nature. The principle is too vague for practical
use, as human nature can be interpreted in very different
fashions.
When several attempts to find a rational basis for morality
had failed, Kant's theory appeared and was hailed by many
as a real advance. None the less, it has not met with
general approval and may be taken as a supreme instance
of the failure to solve the great problem of morality by
reason. I do not wish to deal with it at length, but a
review of its main outlines is pertinent to my argument.
According to Kant, morality cannot be founded on the
feeling of sympathy, nor can it have as its object the happi-
ness of men. Nature w-ould have been an unskilful work-
3 io THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
man were her object the happiness of human beings, for
many lower animals have much more happiness. An inner
law is the force compelling us to morality, and without that
we should have to seek our guide in happiness.
Kant's doctrine is an intuitive theory of morality. It is
Based neither on sympathy nor on any inherent charity,
which would make us covet happiness for our fellows, but
solely on the consciousness of duty. Kant thought that
the action of a man who wished to do good to his fellows
was devoid of merit. Conduct was moral only in so far
as it was obedience to the inner sense of duty. Schiller's
epigram has thrown into relief this part of the great philo-
sopher's theory, "When I take pleasure in doing good to
my neighbour, I am uneasy, as I fear that I have been
lacking in virtue."
In his criticism of Kant's system, Herbert Spencer drew
a picture of a world inhabited by men who had no sym-
pathy for their fellows and who did good to them against
their natural instincts and only from a pure sense of duty.
Spencer thought that such a world would be uninhabitable.
Clearly, moral conduct, on the Kantian basis, could be
followed only by exceptional persons, for most men follow
their inclinations rather than any sense of duty. People
of lower culture would accept kindnesses from others with-
out caring whether the motive were kindness or a sense of
duty, but highly civilised people would not endure service
from those whom they knew to be acting against their
instincts in obedience to a sense of duty. And so men
would be driven to hide the real motives of their conduct,
lest they should offend the sensibility of those towards
whom their moral conduct was directed. Such cases, where
the real motive is concealed, show how impossible it is to
judge of conduct from the motives which may be supposed
MORALITY AND HUMAN NATURE 311
to have inspired it. As it is generally impossible to know
whether some altruistic conduct has been inspired by kind-
ness or has been performed as a duty, it is better to give
up any attempt to appraise the springs of moral conduct.
Kant himself realised the need of some other standard
for appraising human conduct. With such a purpose he
arrived at his well-known maxim : " Let your conduct be
such that your motive might serve as a standard of uni-
versal application." To explain the maxim he gave a
number of examples. A man who is without money and
cannot pay a debt is in doubt as to whether he should
promise to repay his creditor. According to Kant, he
ought to ask himself what would be the result if such a
promise were to be made under similar circumstances by
everyone. It is plain that if such false promises became
universal, they would cease to be believed and so would
be impracticable in actual life. Kant's formula, therefore,
would supply a rational basis for the discrimination of
immoral conduct. In the case of theft it would operate as
follows : if it became the custom for everyone to take what-
ever he wanted, private property and theft would simul-
taneously cease to exist. So also suicide is immoral, since
if it became general the human race would cease to exist.
Kant, however, was looking at only one side of the
problem. Moral conduct is frequently limited to an indi-
vidual, and cannot be generalised for all humanity. Thus,
for instance, if one about to sacrifice his life for the good
of his fellows were to estimate his action according to
Kant's formula, he would reach a conclusion similar to that
in the case of suicide; if everyone were to sacrifice his life
for others, no one would remain alive, and so, according to
Kant, the sacrifice of one's life for the good of others would
be an immoral act.
3 i2 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
It is plain that in his search for a rational basis of moral-
ity, Kant found only a hollow form, void of any substantial
body of morality. It is not enough that a moral man
should take his consciousness of duty as a guide. He must
know what would be the result of his acts. If it is immoral
to make a false promise, it is because people would lose
confidence in such promises, and confidence is necessary
to our well-being. When the formula of Kant condemns
theft, it is because, if theft became general, there could be
no private property, and property is regarded as necessary
to the well-being of men. Suicide is immoral, according to
Kant, because it would lead to the disappearance of the
human race, and human life is of course a good.
Kant tried to found his theory of morality on a rational
basis which excluded the idea of the general good, but it
was impossible for him to avoid it. His " practical reason,"
when it raised the consciousness of duty to a principle,
should have pointed the goal towards which moral acts
were to be directed. In this matter, I find that Kant's
ideas are very vague, although extremely interesting.
The innate feeling of duty implies the will to pursue
moral conduct. This will is independent of the circum-
ambient conditions. Kant in his nebulous language ex-
plains this consideration as follows : " Our reason informs
us of a law to which all our maxims are subject, as if our
will had created its own natural order of things. This law,
then, is in the sphere of a nature which we do not know
empirically but which the freedom of the will makes possible,
a nature which is supra-sensible, but which from the prac-
tical point of view we make objective, because it is created
by our will in virtue of our existence as rational beings.
The difference between the laws of a nature to which the
will is subject and a nature subject to the will subsists in
MORALITY AND HUMAN NATURE 313
this, that in the first the objects must be the causes which
determine -the will, whilst in the second, the will itself
causes the objects so that the causality of the will resides
exclusively in pure reason, pure reason being thus practical
reason " (Critique of Practical Reason).
So far as I can follow the argument of Kant, it seems to
me to imply that rational morality cannot be bound by
human nature as it exists. I may perhaps interpret Kant's
thought as if he had the intuition that the moral will was
capable of modifying nature by subjecting it to its own
laws.
On the other hand, several critics of Kant have attempted
to improve his theory of morality by reconciling it with
human nature as it actually exists. Vacherot, 1 for instance,
has taken such an attitude in the most definite fashion.
He insists that Kant "did not appreciate the capital im-
portance of the object of the moral law. The problem
which under the designation summum bonum absorbed
the schools of antiquity plays a minor part in the Kantian
theory. Kant should have recognised that human destiny
is not limited to duty but must include happiness " (p. 316).
But what is this " happiness " which is to be the standard
of human actions ? To answer this Vacherot places him-
self in the position of those ancient philosophers whom I
discussed in The Nature of Man. He makes his point
absolutely clear. "What is the 'good' for any being?
The attaining of its purpose. What is the purpose of a
being ? The simple development of its nature. Apply
this to man and morality. When human nature is known
by observation and analysis, the deduction can be made as
to what is the purpose, and the good, and therefore the law
,of man. For the conception of the good necessarily in-
1 Essais de Philosophie critique, Paris, 1864.
THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
volves the idea of duty and of law to be imposed on the
will. We have to fall back, then, on knowledge of man, but
it must be complete knowledge, a recognition of the facul-
ties, feelings, and inclinations that are peculiar to him and
that distinguish him from animals" (p. 319). Here is a
summary of this doctrine: "Develop all our natural
powers, subordinating those which are subsidiary to those
which form the peculiar quality of human beings ; this is
the true economy of the little world we call human life;
this is its purpose and this its law. The formula states in
the most scientific and least doubtful form a very old truth,
the foundation of all morality and the test of all its applica-
tions. If we seek to know what are justice, duty and
virtue, we must look in the world itself, and not above or
below it" (Op. 301).
Professor Paulsen, a more recent critic of Kant, comes
to a similar conclusion. 1 He thinks that Kant should have
modified his formula in some such way as follows : " The
laws of morality are rules which might serve for a natural
legislation for human life; in other words, rules that, when
they guided conduct according to natural law, would result
in the preservation and supreme development of human
life."
From whatever side we examine the problem of morality,
we come to submit conduct to the laws of human nature.
Sutherland, a modern author who discusses morality by
the scientific method, defines morality as " conduct guided
by rational sympathy." Such sympathy would not subor-
dinate the chief good of others to an advantage less impor-
tant but more immediate. Thus a mother may sympathise
with her child when it has to take some unpleasant
1 System der Ethik^ 7th and 8th editions, vol. i, p. 199. Berlin
1906.
MORALITY AND HUMAN NATURE 315
medicine; but if her sympathy be rational she will not let
it interfere with the health of the child.
In the foregoing case, sympathy has to be controlled by
medical knowledge. In moral conduct generally, reason
must be the determining factor, whatever be the inspiring
motive of the conduct, whether it come from sympathy or
from the sense of duty. And thus morality in the last resort
must be based on scientific knowledge.
Ill
INDIVIDUALISM
Individual morality History of two brothers brought up in
same circumstances, but whose conduct was quite different
Late development of the sense of life Evolution of sym-
pathy The sphere of egoism in moral conduct Christian
morality Morality of Herbert Spencer Danger of exalted
altruism
ALTHOUGH moral conduct refers specially to the relations
between men, there exists a morality of the individual.
As this latter is simpler, I shall consider it first in my
investigation of rational morality.
When a man, seeking his individual happiness, gives
way to his inclinations without restraint, he often comes to
behave in a way that is generally regarded as immoral.
Following his inclination, he may become idle and drunken.
Idleness may depend on some irregularity of the brain, and
may thus be as natural as is the wish to take drink in the
case of a man to whom alcohol brings a feeling of well-
being and gaiety. Why is it that idleness and alcoholism
are immoral ? Is it because they prevent the living of life
in its completest and widest sense, according to the theory
of Herbert Spencer ? But it is precisely in this way that
the adherents of the theory justify all kinds of excess with-
out which fullness and width of life seem to them impos-
sible.
INDIVIDUALISM 317
Whilst vices such as idleness and drunkenness arise
directly from qualities of the human constitution, they
must be regarded as immoral because they prevent the
completion of the ideal cycle of human life. I knew two
brothers, almost the same age, subject to the same influ-
ences, and brought up in the same environment. None
the less, their tastes and conduct were very different. The
older brother, although very intelligent, during his college
career devoted himself eagerly to bodily exercises and
indulged in every way his inclination for pleasure. " As
the chief end of life is happiness," he said, "one must try
to get as much of it as possible," and so he got into the
habit of visiting places where there was most amusement.
Cards, good living, and women furnished for him the means
of pleasure. As his ability was unusual, he passed his
examinations almost without having worked. The example
of his younger brother, always a devoted student, did not
attract him. "It is all very well for you," he said, "as
you find your happiness in work ; as for me, I detest books,
and I am happy only when I am giving myself up to
pleasure. Everyone must take his own road to the goal
of life." As a result, the health of the older brother w r as
seriously affected by his mode of life. He acquired some
disease of the circulatory system, had to face the end,
and died at the age of fifty-six. The last years of his life
were very unhappy, as the instinct of life developed in him
extremely strongly. He was a victim of his own ignorance
because when he was young he did not know that the sense
of life would develop later on, and would become much
stronger than in his youth. His brother was equally un-
aware of this fact, but, absorbed in scientific study, he kept
himself apart from the indulgences of youth and lived a
sober life. In this way he found that his strength and
3 i 8 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
activity were fully preserved at a time of life when his
older brother was already a physical wreck.
I have quoted this example, not to repeat the banal idea
that a sober life is followed by a healthier old age than an
intemperate life, but because I wish to insist on the import-
ance of the development of the instinct of life in the course
of each individual life. I see that this idea is very little
known. I was present at the last moments of my older
brother (he was called Ivan Ilyitch, and he was the subject
of the famous story of Tolstoi : The Death of Ivan Ilyitch).
Knowing that he was going to die from pyemia, at the
age of forty-five, my brother preserved his great intelli-
gence in all its clearness. As I sat by his bedside he
told me his reflections in the most objective fashion
possible. The idea of his death was for long very terrible
to him, but " as we all die " he came to " resign himself,
saying that after all there was only a quantitative difference
between death at the age of forty-five and later on." This
reflection, which relieved the moral sufferings of my
brother, is none the less untrue. The sense of life is very
different at different ages, and a man who lives beyond the
age of forty-five experiences many sensations which he did
not know before. There is a great evolution of the mind
during the advance of age.
Even if we do not accept the existence of an instinct of
natural death as the crown of normal life, we cannot deny
that youth is only a preparatory stage and that the mind
does not acquire its final development until later on. This
conception should be the fundamental principle of the
science of life and the guide for education and practical
philosophy.
Individual morality consists of conduct permitting the
accomplishment of the normal cycle of life and ending in
INDIVIDUALISM 319
a feeling of satisfaction as complete as possible and which
can be reached only in advanced age. And so, when we
see a man wasting his health and strength and youth, and
thus making himself incapable of feeling the most com-
plete pleasure in life, we call him immoral.
A man entirely isolated does not exist in nature. We
are born weak and incapable of satisfying our needs and
at once come into relations with the human being who
feeds us and protects us. The child, although egoistic,
becomes attached to his protector, and in this way the feel-
ing of sympathy is born. Guided by this feeling as well
as by the sense of his own interest, the child soon begins
to employ his will in restraining some of his instincts, which,
none the less, are quite natural. Thus, the fear of being
deprived of food makes him obedient to his protectors.
The child cannot complete his normal cycle without pursu-
ing a certain moral conduct.
When he becomes adult, man experiences the instinctive
need of relations with someone of the other sex. This need
lays certain duties on him, and although the love of a
young man is less egoistical than that of the child, it is
far from presenting the characters of self-abnegation and
sacrifice.
A young woman, after having passed through the usual
cycle of life with her mother and with a man, becomes
herself a mother. Maternal instinct furnishes her with
certain rules of conduct, but this natural instinct is not
enough to fulfil its object, that is to say, to rear the child
until an age when it can live independently. Directed by
a feeling of sympathy for her child, the young mother
learns from women with more experience to ward off
dangers from her child. In the first years, moral conduct
on the part of the mother consists almost entirely in bring-
320 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
ing up the child in a healthy way. For this purpose she
must acquire much knowledge. If she remains ignorant,
her conduct must be regarded as immoral.
So far as concerns the bringing up of a child, the moral
problem is quite simple, because we are all agreed that the
object is to rear the child to maturity in the healthiest pos-
sible condition. When the child exhibits any habits
harmful to this object, although due to natural instincts,
the mother applies her knowledge to restrain them without
paying attention to the theory that happiness consists in the
fulfilment of everything that is natural. When a child has
passed through the perilous first period of its life, the
mother has to ask what general object she is to follow in
its education. She wishes her child to be as happy as
possible. Here the conception of orthobiosis will serve
her, and it will teach her that the greatest happiness con-
sists in the normal evolution of the sense of life, leading
to serene old age, and finally reaching the fulness of satiety
of life. Man, who has passed his apprenticeship to life
from his birth, with his protectors, and, later on, with
persons of the other sex, inevitably acquires certain
elements necessary for social life. Persuaded that in order
to succeed in his individual life he must have help from
his fellows, he learns to subdue his anti-social tendencies,
at first in his own interests. Let me take an example of
this. When a man has reached a certain stage of civilisa-
tion, it generally becomes impossible to him to supply his
bodily wants without the help of persons less cultured than
himself. He takes into his house one or more servants,
with whom he enters into definite relations. He wishes for
himself and those about him a normal life, such as I have
described in The Nature of Man. To attain this it is in-
dispensable in his own interest and in that of his family,
INDIVIDUALISM 321
that his domestic servants should be well treated. The
health of the family very often depends on the conduct of
the servants, who will follow conscientiously the hygienic
rules only if they themselves are living in good conditions.
The custom according to which the masters live in luxu-
riously furnished rooms, while their servants have mean
quarters in the attics, is immoral from the point of view of
the well-being of the masters themselves. The crowded
servants' quarters are a nest of all sorts of infection, which
may spread in the families of the masters. Very often
people who think that they are following the rules of exact
hygiene contract diseases without knowing that the infec-
tion has come from their servants.
Anger gives us another example. It is certainly harmful
to the health, and so should be controlled in the interest
of the bad-tempered person himself. Fits of rage are fre-
quently followed by ruptures of blood-vessels, and by
diabetes, and even cataracts have developed after some
violent passion.
Luxurious habits are also well known to be harmful to
the health. Heavy meals, evenings passed in the theatre
and in society may seriously affect activity of the organs.
Moreover, the luxury of some people is often the cause of
misery to others. The knowledge that luxurious habits
shorten life and prevent man from reaching the greatest
happiness may warn people against luxury better than
the appeal to the feeling of sympathy.
As it is a fact that most men guide their lives generally
from egoistic motives, any theory of morality which is to
be put into practice must reckon seriously with this factor.
All other systems have recognised it. In the Sermon on
the Mount, which is a summary of Christian morality, each
moral act is recognised on the ground that it will bring
Y
322 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
some reward or obviate some punishment. " Rejoice,"
said Jesus, "and be exceeding glad; for great is your
reward in heaven" (Matt, v., 12). "Take heed that ye
do not your alms before men, to be seen of them ; otherwise
ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven"
(Matt, vi., i). "That thine alms may be in secret; and
thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee
openly" (Matt, vi., 4). "Judge not, that ye be not
judged" (Matt, vii., i). "But if ye forgive not men
their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your tres-
passes " (Matt, vi., 15). Jesus had no high opinion of
the influence of altruism on human conduct.
Herbert Spencer in his treatise on morality (The Data
of Ethics) also insists that laws of conduct, to be of
general application, must not require men to make too great
sacrifices, as otherwise the best teaching would remain a
dead letter. He imagines, however, that in the future the
human race will be so much improved that moral conduct
will become instinctive, needing no compulsion. The Eng-
lish philosopher presents a view of the future of the human
race totally at variance with the Kantian conception.
Instead of human beings becoming filled with a sense of
duty opposed to their natural instincts, the world will be
peopled with men acting morally from inclination, so
making the world delightful.
The ideal is so far removed from existing conditions that
the possibility of its attainment is hardly worth consider-
ing. It is probable that a world whose inhabitants had
the feeling of sympathy very highly developed would not
be so delightful. For sympathy is generally a reaction
against evil. When evil disappears, sympathy would be
not merely useless, but annoying and harmful.
George Eliot in Middlemarch describes a young woman
INDIVIDUALISM 323
enthusiastically anxious to do good to her fellows. When
she came to live in a village, she made great plans to
succour its poor. Her disillusion and annoyance were
great when she found that the villagers were quite com-
fortably off, and had no need of her charity.
John Stuart Mill in his Autobiography relates that when
he was young he dreamed of reforming society and making
everyone happy. But when he asked himself if the accom-
plishment of his beautiful ideas would make him happy,
he was compelled to answer "No! " and this discovery
plunged the young philosopher into a lamentable condi-
tion. He described himself as quite overcome, all that
supported him in life crumbling away. His happiness
could lie only in the constant pursuit of his object, and the
charm seemed broken, because if attainment were not to
please him, how could the means be of any interest to
him ? It -seemed to him that nothing was left to which
he could dedicate his life.
As it is highly probable that with the advance of civilisa-.
tion the greatest evils of humanity will become lessened,
and may even disappear, the sacrifices to be made will also
become less. Now that there is a serum which protects
against plague, there is no room for the heroism of the
doctors who used to incur the greatest danger in fighting
epidemics. Until lately doctors used to risk their life in
treating the throats of diphtheric patients. A young doctor
who was a friend of mine, of high ability and promise, died
from diphtheria contracted under these conditions. He
met his death, in isolation from his friends in case of infect-
ing them, with the utmost heroism. Now that the anti-
diphtheric serum has been discovered, such heroism would
be unnecessary. The advance of science has removed the
occasion of such sacrifices.
Y 2
324 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
It is now very long since there has been opportunity for
the heroism which steeled the hand of Abraham to sacri-
fice his only son to his religion. Human sacrifice, based on
the highest morality, has become more and more rare, and
will finally disappear. Rational morality, although it may
admire such conduct, has no use for it. So also, it may
foresee a time when men will be so highly developed that
instead of being delighted to take advantage of the sym-
pathy of their fellows, they will refuse it absolutely.
Neither the Kantian idea of virtue, doing good as a pure
duty, nor that of Herbert Spencer, according to which
men have an instinctive need to help their fellows, will be
realised in the future. The ideal will rather be that of
men who will be self-sufficient and who will no longer
permit others to do them good.
IV
ORTHOBIOSIS
Human nature must be modified according to an ideal
Comparison with the modification of the constitution of
plants and of animals Schlanstedt rye Burbank's
plants The ideal of orthobiosis The immorality of ignor-
ance The place of hygiene in the social life The place of
altruism in moral conduct The freedom of the theory of
orthobiosis from metaphysics
As I have shown in The Nature of Man, the human con-
stitution as it exists to-day, being the result of a long
evolution and containing a large animal element, cannot
furnish the basis of rational morality. The conception
which has come down from antiquity to modern times, of
a harmonious activity of all the organs, is no longer appro-
priate to mankind. Organs which are in course of atrophy
must not be reawakened, and many natural characters
which perhaps were useful in the case of animals must be
made to disappear in men.
Human nature, which, like the constitutions of other
organisms, is subject to evolution, must be modified accord-
ing to a definite ideal. Just as a gardener or stock raiser
is not content with the existing nature of the plants and
animals with which he is occupied, but modifies them to
suit his purposes, so also the scientific philosopher must
not think of existing human nature as immutable, but must
try to modify it for the advantage of mankind.
326 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
As bread is the chief article in human food, attempts
to improve cereals have been made for a very long time.
Rimpau made one of the greatest steps in this direction
when he introduced into cultivation a variety of rye known
as Schlanstedt rye, now fairly abundant in France and
Germany. Rimpau set himself the task of producing a
variety with the longest ears and containing many and
heavy grains. Having conceived his ideal, he began to
seek out what was nearest to it in a very large number of
examples of rye. After patient and continued labour,
using careful selection and cross-fertilisation, Rimpau
succeeded in making the new variety, and so did a great
service to mankind.
Burbank, 1 an American horticulturist, has recently
gained a wide reputation because of his improvements of
useful plants. He has produced a new kind of potato
which has raised the value of potato crops in the United
States by about .3,500,000 per annum. Burbank cultivated
great numbers of fruit trees, flowers, and all kinds of
plants, with the object of increasing their utility. One of
his objects was to produce varieties which could resist
dry conditions, which reproduced rapidly and so forth.
He has modified the nature of plants to such an extent that
he has cactus plants and brambles without thorns. The
succulent leaves of the former provide an excellent food for
cattle, whilst the absence of thorns in the latter makes
their pleasant fruit more suitable for gardens. Burbank
has enormously improved the production of stoneless
plums, and has very much reduced the price of many bulbs
and lilies by increasing their productivity.
To obtain such results much knowledge and a long
period of time were necessary. To modify the nature of
1 De Vries, in Biologisches Centralblatt, 1906, Sept. ist, p. 609.
ORTHOBIOSIS 327
plants it was necessary to understand them well. To frame
the new ideal of the plant it was necessary not only to have
an exact conception of what was wanted, but to find out if
the qualities of the plants in question furnished any hope
of realising it.
The methods which have been successful in the case of
plants and animals must be much modified for application
to the human race. In the case of human beings the selec-
tion and cross-breeding which were imposed upon rye and
plum trees are not possible, but, at the same time, the
ideal of human nature, towards which mankind ought to
press, may be formed. In our opinion this ideal is ortho-
biosis, that is to say, the development of the human life
so that it passes through a long period of old age in active
and vigorous health, leading to the final period in which
there shall be present a sense of satiety of life, and a
wish for death. I do not think that the ideal should be
that of Herbert Spencer, a simple prolongation of human
life. When the instinct of death comes at a not very late
period of life, there would be no inconvenience in shorten-
ing the life, if death did not come soon after the appear-
ance of the instinct. Probably this would be the only case
where suicide was justified in the conception of orthobiosis.
The foregoing is the case of an action in conformity
with the ideal, but quite contrary to human nature as it is
at present. A similar contradiction appears in reproduc-
tion. Man came from animals amongst which unlimited
reproduction was an important factor in the preser-
vation of the species, as it allowed the species to survive
under all sorts of bad conditions, such as diseases, com-
bats, attacks of enemies, and changes of climate. Although
man, according to the laws of human nature, is capable
of reproducing extremely rapidly, the ideal of his happiness
328 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
makes a restriction of this power necessary. Thus ortho-
biosis, based upon knowledge of human nature, would set
limits to a function which is perhaps the most natural of
all. The restriction which is already partially adopted
will come more and more into operation as the struggle
against diseases, the prolongation of human life, and the
suppression of war make progress. It will be one of the
chief means of diminishing the most brutal forms of the
struggle for existence, and of increasing moral conduct
amongst mankind.
Just as Rimpau began to study the nature of plants
before trying to realise his ideal, so also varied and pro-
found knowledge is the first requisite for the ideal of moral
conduct. It is necessary not only to know the structure
and function of the human organism, but to have exact
ideas on human life as it is in society. Scientific know-
ledge is so indispensable for moral conduct that ignorance
must be placed among the most immoral acts. A mother
who rears her child in defiance of good hygiene, from want
of knowledge, is acting immorally towards her offspring,
notwithstanding her feeling of sympathy. And this also
is true of a Government which remains in ignorance of the
laws which regulate human life and human society.
It must be well understood that I am not here thinking of
written knowledge, set down in treatises and volumes.
Rimpau and Burbank went outside manuals of botany to
obtain their knowledge. Besides books, wide ideas on the
practice of life are required to direct aright the conduct of
men. A doctor who has just finished his studies at the
hospital, notwithstanding all his knowledge, is not yet suffi-
ciently trained to be a good practitioner. He must acquire
the habit of treating patients, and for this years are re-
quired. So also is it with regard to the practical applica-
ORTHOBIOSIS 329
tions of the principles of morality. The regulation of
conduct requires profound knowledge both theoretical and
practical, and men selected to frame or to apply laws of
morality must have this double qualification. If the human
race come to adopt the principles of orthobiosis, a consider-
able change in the qualities of men of different ages will
follow. Old age will be postponed so much that men of
from sixty to seventy years of age will retain their vigour,
and will not require to ask assistance in the fashion now
necessary. On the other hand, young men of twenty-one
years of age will no longer be thought mature or ready to
fulfil functions so difficult as taking a share in public affairs.
The view which I set forth in The Nature of Man regard-
ing the danger which comes from the present interference of
young men in political affairs has since then been confirmed
in the most striking fashion.
It is easily intelligible that in the new conditions such
modern idols as universal suffrage, public opinion, and the
referendum, in which the ignorant masses are called on to
decide questions which demand varied and profound know-
ledge, will last no longer than the old idols. The progress
of human knowledge will bring about the replacement of
such institutions by others, in which applied morality will
be controlled by the really competent persons. I permit
myself to suppose that in these times, scientific training
will be much more general than it is just now, and that it
will occupy the place which it deserves in education and in
life.
It is equally clear that if a mother is to act morally with
regard to her child, she must teach herself properly. In
place of mythology and literature, she must learn hygiene
and all that relates to the rational rearing of children. So,
also, in the education of men, the study of the exact
330 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
sciences must occupy by far the most important place.
Then only will moral conduct and scientific knowledge
begin to unite. An ignorant mother will bring up a child
very badly notwithstanding all her good will and her affec-
tion. A doctor, however imbued with strong sympathy for
his patients, could do them much harm if he had not the
appropriate knowledge. Are not politicians open to the
reproach from the point of view of morality that very often
through ignorance they do the very worst evil in public
administration ? With the progress of knowledge, moral
conduct and useful conduct will become more and more
closely identified.
I have been reproached because in my system the health
of the body occupies too large a place. It cannot be other-
wise, because health certainly plays the chief part in exist-
ence. Notwithstanding his pessimism, Schopenhauer was
convinced that health was the greatest treasure, a treasure
before which everything else yielded. In many religions
care of the health is laid down amongst the chief duties.
Although many scientific men do not hold the opinion
that circumcision was ordained for hygienic reasons, it
is certain that hygiene was extremely important in the
Jewish religion. It is only in Christianity, which despises
the human body, that hygiene is excluded from the re-
ligious code, as in the words of Jesus :
"Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or
what ye shall drink ; nor yet for your body, what ye shall
put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body
than raiment?" (Matt, vi., 25). As for long ages
hygiene was very imperfectly known, it is not surprising
that it played a small part in human affairs. Probably
the objection to the importance that I assign to it in ortho-
biosis is a relic from the old order of things. Now, how-
ORTHOBIOSIS 331
ever, the situation is different. Bacteriology has placed
hygiene on a scientific foundation, so that the latter is now
one of the exact sciences. It has now become necessary
to give it the chief place in applied morality as it is the
branch of knowledge that teaches how men ought to live.
It has been objected that I have left no place for altruism
in my system. 1 Certainly I have tried to find an egoistic
basis for moral conduct, as I have shown above. I think,
however, that the wish to live according to the ideal of
orthobiosis and to make others live a normal life would be
a powerful agency in improving social life, in preventing
mutual damage, and promoting mutual help. Such a
motive, within the reach of persons whose altruistic feel-
ings are not specially strong, must largely extend moral
conduct amongst human beings, and even although in
future such manifestations of high morality as the sacrifice
of life and health will become wholly or nearly wholly
useless, I think that for the present there is still room for
altruism. The practical application of scientific knowledge
already gained admits much self-denial and good feeling.
Struggle against prejudices of all kinds and the develop-
ment and diffusion of sound ideas require a conduct very
highly altruistic.
The fears of my opponents are still less justified when
we reflect that the feelings of sympathy and of cohesion
must play a large part in the business of helping the
evolution of man towards the goal of normal life.
Although our actual knowledge already provides a basis
of rational morality, it may be admitted that in the
future, if science continues its forward march, the rules of
moral conduct will become still more improved. There will
1 Dr. Grasset, "La fin de la vie" in the Revue de philosephie^ Aug.
ist, 1903.
332 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
be no ground for reproaching me for a blind faith in the
all-powerf illness of science. Much more trust can be given
to one who has faithfully carried out his promises, than to
one who has promised much and fulfilled nothing. Science
has already justified the hopes which have been placed in it.
It has saved people from the most terrible diseases, and
has made life much easier. On the other hand, religions,
which demand an uncritical faith as the means of curing the
ills which afflict humanity, have not fulfilled their promises.
The reproach that I preach blind faith in the progress of
science, destined to replace religious faith, is unjust, because
my faith depends on a confidence that science has already
deserved. Equally unjust is the reproach that I have built
my system on a partly metaphysical principle. Accord-
ing to M. Parodi, 1 the hypothesis of physiological old age
and of natural death seem to " involve the idea of a natural
duration of human life, which, however, from accidental
reasons man does not complete at present. M. Metchnikoff
repeatedly uses the expression ' normal cycle.' Now do
we not see here the surreptitious repetition of the old teleo-
logical conception of nature, although at first he so ener-
getically disavowed it ? It is the belief that the species is
a necessary reality, corresponding to a definite type of its
own, in fact a special design of nature; that nature, to
guide herself, had an ideal which circumstances could
mistake or degrade, but which had to be restored to its
perfect form ? Otherwise, why does he insist that there
must be a condition of perfect and stable equilibrium
between individual and environment ? that there is a normal
cycle and that it must be possible to harmonise the dis-
harmonies?"
I can show easily that all these objections rest upon a
1 "Morale et biologic," Revue philosophique, 1904, vol. Iviii, p. 125.
ORTHOBIOSIS 333
simple misunderstanding. I have never conceived of the
existence of any ideal of nature or of the inevitable neces-
sity of transforming disharmonies to harmonies. I have
no knowledge of the " designs "and " motives " of nature ;
I have never taken my stand on metaphysical ground. I
have not the remotest idea if nature has any ideal and if
the appearance of man on the earth were a part of such an
ideal. What I have spoken of is the ideal of man corre-
sponding to the need to ward off the great evils of old age
as it is now, and of death as we see it around us. I have
said, moreover, that human nature, that collection of com-
plex features of multiple origin, contains certain elements
which may be used to modify it according to our human
ideal. I have done nothing but what the horticulturist
does when he finds in the nature of plants elements which
suggest to him to try and make new and improved races.
Just as the constitution of some plum trees contains elements
which make it possible to produce plums without stones
which are pleasanter to eat, so also in our own nature there
exist characters which make it possible to transform our
disharmonious nature into a harmonious one, in accord-
ance with our ideal, and able to bring us happiness. I
have not the smallest idea what ideal nature may have on
the subject of plums, but I know very well that man has
such designs and such an ideal as form a point of de-
parture for the transformation of the nature of plums.
Substitute man for the plum tree and you are at my point
of view. When I have spoken of the normal cycle of life
or of physiological old age, I have used the words normal
and physiological only in relation to our ideal of the
human constitution. I might just as well have said that a
cactus without thorns is the normal cactus in the conditions
where it was desired to obtain a succulent plant useful as
334 THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE
food for cattle. The words "normal" and "physio-
logical " seemed to me more convenient than such a phrase
as "in correspondence with human ideals."
I am so little convinced of the existence of any dis-
position of nature to transform our ills into goods, and
our disharmonies into harmonies, that it would not surprise
me if such an ideal were never reached. Even in unmeta-
physical circles it is said that nature has the intention of
preserving the species at the expense of the individual. The
ground of this is that the species survives the individual . On
the other hand, very many species have completely disap-
peared. Amongst these species were animals very highly
organised, such as some anthropoid apes (Dryopithecus,
etc.). As nature has not spared these, how can we be
certain that she is not ready to deal with the human race
in the same way. It is impossible for us to know the un-
known, its plans and motives. We must leave nature on
one side and concern ourselves with what is more congru-
ous with our intelligence.
Our intelligence informs us that man is capable of much,
and for this reason we hope that he may be able to modify
his own nature and transform his disharmonies into har-
monies. It is only human will that can attain this ideal.
INDEX
ABELARD, 273
Abraham, use of soured milk, 171
Ackermann, Mde., 237
Actinosphcerium, degeneration in, 14
Adanson, on age of Baobab-tree, 98
Adrenaline, effect of, 121
Agave, duration of life of, 100
Aged, treatment of in uncivilised
countries, i, a
Alcohol and longevity, 91, 92
Algeria, ostriches at, 76, 78, 79
Altruism, 331
Ambard, Dr., on Mde. Robineau, 7
Anaemia, of brain, and sleep, 122
use of serums in, 149
Andre, M., use of serums in
anasmia, 149
Anger, 321
Annandale, Nelson, on age of ane-
mones, 48
Annuals, change to biennials or
perennials, 100
death of, 102
Antelopes, excreta of, 66
Anthropoids, mental characters of,
191 ct seq.
Antiseptics, use of, in intestinal
putrefaction, 156
Ants, 220, 221
Apes, anthropoid, mental characters
of, 191 et seq.
relationship to man, 184, 185
Arabs, use of milk by, 174
Aristotle, 132
Arteries, sclerosis of, in the aged,
3 1
Ascidians, social, 219
Ashworth, Mr., on age of anemones,
48
Atheroma, in the aged, 30
Atrophy, of cells, 26
of muscles, 28
Auditory apparatus, rudimentary
organism, 188
Augsburg, elixir of life, 138
Auto-intoxication, from intestinal
putrefaction, 69
in plants, 107
sleep, due to, 120
Babinsky, Dr., hysteria a relic
from apes, 209
Balkan States, centenarians fre-
quent in, 90
Baobab-tree, age of, 98
Barth, Dr., definition of somnam-
bulism, 206
Batrachia, longevity of, 50
Bats, intestinal flora of, 80, 81
Bees, 49, 220, 226
Beetroot, perennial variety of, 100
Belgium, old age pensions, 4
Belonovsky, M., on serums in
anaemia, 148
Belonowsky, Dr., on Bulgarian
bacillus, 170
Berthelot, on dragon-tree of Oro-
tava, 96
Bertrand, M. G., on sorbose fer-
mentation, 106
Bertrand and Weisweiler, on Bacil-
lus bulgaris, 179
Besredka, M., on blood serums,
148, 149
Bielschowsky, biographer of Goethe,
269
Blanchard, E., on age of carp, 50
Birds, intestinal flora of, 76, 79
longevity of, 52
Blindness, 248, 257
Bloch, Dr. I., on Schopenhauer,
2 47
336
INDEX
Blood-vessels, hardening of, in the
old, 31
Bodio, on infant mortality, 85
Boerhave, on gerokomy, 136
Bones, degeneration of, 29, 30
Bordet, M. J. M., on serums, 148
Botulism, poison of, 70, 82
Bouchard, M., on disinfection of
intestines, 156
Bouchet, M., on constipation after
parturition, 68
Bourneville, M., on effects of extir-
pation of thyroid, 34
Boveri, M., produced atherana by
nicotine, 32
Bone, marrow, in old age, 37
Botryllus, 219
Boutroux, definition of morality,
Bradyfagy, 159
Brain, anaemia of, as cause of
sleep, 122
Brehm, on age of cattle, 55
Brettes, criticism of " rudimentary
organs," 186
Bricon, M., on effects of extirpa-
tion of thyroid, 34
Brigand, Calabrian, fear of death,
'94. *95
Brillat-Savarin, quotation from, 126
Brown-S^quard, specific for long
life, 139, 277
Brudzinsky, M., on use of lactic
microbes, 181
Buddha, on pessimism, 233, 247
Buehler, Dr., on cause of old age,
16
Buffon, on duration of life, 40, 50
Bulgarian bacillus, 178, 179, 180,
iSi, 182
Bunge, on relation between growth
and longevity, 42
Burbank, American horticulturist,
326, 328
Butterflies, longevity of, 57
Butschli, O., on life of cells, 15
Byron, 239, 247, 295
C.ACHEXIA, after extirpation of
thyroid gland, 34
Caeca, of vertebrates, 60 et seq.
Cagliostro, elixir of life, 138
Calomel, as an intestinal antiseptic,
syphilis, 146
Camphor, as an intestinal anti-
septic, 156
Canary Islands, 96
Cancalon, Dr., on instinct of death,
128, 129
Cancer, and cleanliness, 144
Candolle, A. de, on cypresses of
Mexico, 98
on age of trees, 99
Cantacuzene, M., on blood serums
148
Capital punishment, 305
Carlyle, on " Werther," 265
Castration, effects of, 272
Cats, longevity of, 56
Cattle, longevity of, 55
Celibacy, and education of women,
224
Cell reproduction, rate of, 16
Centenarians, 4, 5, 86, 88, 89, 175,
176
Charcot, on sterilised food, 162, 163
on hysteria, 202
Charron, M., on putrefactive
poisons, 69
Chemin, M., on centenarians, 88,
89
Chimpanzee, 185, 192, 193
China, Emperor Chi-Hoang-Ti and
immortality, 137
Chopin, a degenerate, 134
Christian morality, 321, 330
Chromophags, action of, 25
Claparede, E., on theory of sleep,
123, 124, 125
Cleanliness, and increase of life,
144
Clergymen, increasing duration of
life of, 142
Coffee and longevity, 92
Cohausen, on gerokomy, 137
Cohendy, Dr. M., on Bulgarian
bacillus, 178
on intestinal flora, 78, 79
on intestinal putrefaction, 168
on thymol as a disinfectant, 157
Collectivism, 228
Colon, absorption in, 64
Constipation, evil results of, 67,
68, 69
Cooking, effect of, on microbes in
food, 162
Copenhagen, suicide in, 3
Coral polyps, 216
Cornaro, 91
Cossacks, and biennial rye, 100
Cretinism, compared with senility,
32
Croesus, 197
Cryptogams, life of, 99
INDEX
337
Cursorial birds, intestinal flora of,
76
Cypress, age of, 98
Czerny, M., on absorption in
colon, 64
on cancer, 144
D 'ALTON, and Goethe, 280
Dalyell, old anemone of, 48
Dana, on monstrilla, 115
Darwin, on fear, 195
David, King, 136
Death, instinct of, 128, 129
natural, 94, 109, 119
sensations at approach of, 126,
127, 130
Debreuil, Ch., on defecation in
rheas, 76
on excreta of antelopes, 66
Degenerates, famous, 134
Delage, Yves, criticism of instinct
of death, 128
on function of large intestines,
65, 66
Demange, M., on old age, 119
Denmark, suicide in, 3, 237
Descent of man, 184
Despotism, and socialism, 230
de Vries, H., on duration of life
of plants, 104
on prolongation of life of
plants, 100
on natural death in plants, 101
Diet and longevity, 46
Digestive system and senility, 59
Diplogaster, mother killed by
larvae, in
Diphtheria, 323
Disease, and shortening of life, 145
et seq.
Doctors, lady, 225
Dodo, 213
Dogs, longevity of, 55
Dostoiewsky, quotation from, 2
Doyen, M., operation on double
monsters, 216
Dragon-tree, of Orotava, 96, 97, 98
Drakenberg, age of, 87
Drunkenness, and morality, 317
Dryopithecus, 334
Ducks, old, ii
Duering, on pessimism, 248
Durand-Fardel, M., on atheroma,
30
Duration of life, in animals, 39 et
seq., 133
EAGLES, intestinal flora of, 82
Ecclesiastes, quotation from, 233
Eckermann, narrative of Goethe's
last years, 271, 274, 279
Egoism, 227, 306, 331
Egyptian milk, 105
Eimer, Th., on intestines of bats
&c., 62, 63
Einhorn, Dr., on bradyfagy, 159
Elective Affinities, Goethe's, 273
Elephants, 9, 54, 83, 197
Eliot, George, 322
Elixir vitce, 138
Ellenberger, on digestion in horse,
78
Enriquez, on infusoria, 13
Ephemeridae, duration of life of,
113, 118
Epicureans, 309
Epiphyses of bones, as giving
period of growth, 40
Ermenghem, van, on botulism, 70
Errera, Dr., on cause of sleep, 121
Eudoxia, 218
Ewald, on absorption in colon, 64
Exhaustion, as cause of plant
death, 104, 107
Extinction of animals, 213
Eye, in old age, 36
FATIGUE, Weichardt on cause of,
123
" Faust " and Goethe, 283 et seq.
Favorsky, Dr., on botulism, 82
Fear, analysis of, 194
Fecundity and duration of life, 43,
44. 45. 57. 58
Feinkind, case of somnambulism
quoted from, 204
Femininist movement, 224
Fermentation, cause of, 105
Fertility and longevity, 44, 45
Fish, longevity of, 50
Flamans, M., 5
Fletcher, on chewing, 159
Flora, of intestines, poisonous
effect of, 70, 73 et seq., 151 et
seq.
Flourens, on duration of life, 40,
84
Foa, on use of soured milk in
Africa, 172
Food, evil effects of putrefaction
in, 163
Fouard, M., on soured milk, 180
Fiirbbinger, on Brown-Se"quard's
emulsions, 139
Z
338
INDEX
Gautier, A., on leucomaines, 121
Gegenbaur, on intestinal tract, 60,
6l
Genius and sexual power, 272
Gerokomy, 136
Gessner, on age of pike, 50
Gestation and longevity, 42
Giacomini, on Harderian gland, 189
Gibbons, 192, 198
Goebel, on duration of life of
protnalli, 101, 102
Goethe, 260-300, 305
" Goose-skin," 196
Gorilla, strength of, 192
Griesbach, on sense of touch in
blind, 257
Grigoroff, on Bulgarian yahourth,
175, 178
Grindon, on age of sheep, 55
Guinon, Dr., on a case of hysteria,
203
Gurney, J. H., on longevity of
birds, 51, 79
HAECKEL, on medical selection, 134
Haffkine, M., 112
Hair, 17, 18
Halictus, a solitary bee, 226
Haller, on human longevity, 84,
132
Hamlet, quotation from, 239
Hannibal, his elephants swim the
Rhone, 197
Harderian gland, 189
Hartmann, 235, 241
Harvey, on Parr, 87
Hayem, Prof., on use of lactic
acid, 169, 173
Heart, diseases of, and syphilis,
MS. 146
Hegesias, and suicide, 234
Heile, on absorption in colon, 64
Heim, on microbes in milk, 176
Heim, Prof., on Alpine accidents,
130
Heine, 236, 240
Hermippus, and gerokomy, 137
Herter, Dr., experiments on lactic
acid in dogs, 167
Hertwig, R., on Actinosph&rium,
Hildebrand, on duration of life of
plants, 101, 102
Hippocrates, 132
Hofmeister, on digestion in horse,
Honey-ant, 222
Horse, caecum, 62
digestion, 74
use of serum, 147
Horsley, Sir V., on effects of ex-
tirpation of thyroid, 34
Horst, on a somnambulistic soldier,
203
Huf eland, quotation from " Macro-
biotique," 137
Hugo, V., and sexuality, 277
Humboldt, on dragon-tree of Oro-
tava, 96
on longevity of parrots, 52
Hunger, compared with sleep, 125
Huxley, on character of Orang, 193
Hygiene, and old age, 141, 142, 143
Hypnotism, of a crowd on indi-
viduals, 210
Hysteria, analysis of, 200 et seq.
in monkeys, 208
IBSEN, and sexuality, 277
Idleness, 316
Immortality, Chinese beverage for,
137. '38
Incubation, duration of, compared
with longevity, 41, 42
India, government of, and age of
elephants, 54
Individualism, 316
Individuality, 212 et seq.
Infusoria, death of, 95
senescence of, 13
Insects, ages of, 49
social, 220 et seq.
Instinct, of death, 128, 129
maternal, 319, 320, 329
social, 306
Intestine, large, 59, 65, 67, 151
Intuitive theory of morality, 305
JACOBSON, organ of, 187
Javal, Dr., on characters of the
blind, 257, 259
Jenner, effect of vaccination on
mortality rate, 144
Josue, M., artificial production of
atheroma, 32
Jousset, Dr., on difference between
man and apes, 184
KANT, 309, 310
Kautsky, on socialism, 229, 230
Kentigern, age of, 87
INDEX
339
Kephir, 171, 172, 173
Khoury, M., on ferment of Egyp-
tian milk, 105
Kocher, Dr., on effects of extirpa-
tion of thyroid gland, 33
Kocher, Prof., case of removal of
large intestine, 152, 153
Kolliker, on degeneration of
muscles, 27
Koppenfels, on character of gorilla,
194
Koumiss, 172
Kowalevsky, Sophie, 225
Kowalevsky, analysis of pessimism,
24 1 . 2 55
Kukula, experiments on intestinal
poisons, 69, 70
Kwass, 166
LACTIC BACILLI, and putrefaction in
intestine, 168
Laignel-Lavastine, M., criticism of
neuronophagy, 20
Lankester, Sir E. Ray, on lon-
gevity, 12, 56
Lao-Tse", and immortality, 137
Laud, Archbishop, old tortoise of,
51
Lautschenberger, on absorption in
colon, 64
Lavater, Goethe's letter to, 268
Laws aiding the aged, 3, 4
" Leben," Egyptian, 105, 171, 177,
178
Le Bon, G., on hysteria in crowds,
209
Lenau, M., 236
Lenthe'ric, on elephants swimming,
197
Leopard!, G., pessimistic poet, 235,
. 236, 247
Le Play, M., on putrefactive
poisons, 69
LeVi, M., on senile brain, 20
Lermontoff, 236
Leucomaines, as cause of sleep, 121
Levaillant, on longevity of parrots,
S 2
Lewes, G. H., on Goethe, 273, 290,
29;, 298
Lexis, on duration of human life,
5
Life, duration of, in animals, 39
et seq.
Life, prolongation of human, 132, et
seq.
" sense " of, 260
Lima, Dr., on use of soured milk
in Africa, 172, 174
Lloyd, M., old anemone of, 47
London Zoological Gardens, 51, 81
Longevity, in animal kingdom, 47
et seq.
human, 84 et seq.
rules for, 141
in sexes, 44
theories of, 39
Lorand, Dr., on ductless glands,
32
Love, Goethe and, 272
Loewenberg, Dr., on Mde. Robin-
eau, 7
Luxury, 321
MACFADYEN, Nencki and Mde.
Sieber, on digestion, 153, 161
Macrophags, 25, 147
Mailaender, 235, 255
Malaquin, M., on Monstrilla, 116,
117
Male rotifers, death of, 114, 115
Malthus, theory of, 214
Mammals, longevity of, 53
Mammary glands, in males, 186
Man, compared with apes, 184, 185
natural death of, 119 et seq.
longevity of, 84 et seq.
Manouelian, M., on neuronophagy,
21, 22
Marinesco, M., on neuronophogs,
19
Marrow of the bones, in old age
37
Marsiliaceae, duration of life of
prothallus, 99
Martin, on Gibbons, 192
Massart, on cause of death in
plants, 102, 109
Massol, Prof., 178
Mastication, and intestinal putre-
faction, 1 60
Matchinsky, M., on atrophy of
ovary, 26
Maternal instinct, 319, 320
Mauclaire, M., operations on large
intestine, 153, 154, 155
Maumus, M., on digestion in caeca,
61
Mauritius, giant tortoise from, 12
Maupas, M., on infusoria, 13
Maya, 178
Mayers, on Chinese elixir, 138
Meconium, appearance of microbes
in, 161
340
INDEX
Medical selection, 134
Mesnet and Mottet, Drs., cases of
hysteria, 203
Mice, duration of life, 41, 43, 56
Michaelis, on muscles of monkeys,
185
Microbes, as cause of senility, 73
in food, 162, 163
passage through intestinal
walls, 71
Middlemarch, G. Eliot's, 322
Milk, importance of boiling, 177,
178
microbes of disease in, 177
putrefaction and fermentation
of, 167
use of soured milk, 181, 182
Mill, J. S., 323
Milne-Edwards, H., on laws of
duration of life, 42
Minot, Prof., on cause of old age,
1 6
Moa, 213
Moebius, on Goethe, 271
on Schopenhauer, 255
Molluscs, ages of, 48
Mongols, hair in old, 17
Monkeys, longevity of, 83
Monsters, double, 216
Monstrilla, life-history of, 115, 116,
117
Montefiore, Sir M., 91
Morality, Christian, 321
definitions of, 303
Kantian, 309, 310, 311, 312
science and, 301 et seq.
Mortality rates of old persons, 142,
*43
Moses, use of soured milk, 171
Mosso, on fear, 194, 196
Muscles, degeneration of, 9, 26, 27
Myxomycetes, 215
NAEGELI, on age of trees, 99
Nails, growth of, in the old, 18
Naphthaline, as an intestinal anti-
septic, 156
Nature, human, 325
Nausenne, Mde., cause of longevity,
141
Negroes, longevity of, 88
Neisser, Prof., on protection
against syphilis, 146
Nematodes, death of, in
Nemertines, life-history of Pilidium
of, 109 et seq.
Nencki and Sieber, on digestion,
153, 161, 169
Neuronophags, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23,
24
Nicotine, use of in experimental
production of atheroma, 32
Nietzsche, criticism of Socialism, -230
Nogueira, M., on use of soured milk
in Africa, 172, 174
OBSTACLES, sense of, 258
Old age, Goethe and, 279 et seq.
Olympian, Goethe as an, 269
Optimism, foundation of, 256
Goethe's transformation to,
269, 270 et seq.
Orang-outan, 185, 193
Orotava, dragon-tree of, 96
Orstein, Dr., on centenarians ill
Greece, 90
Orthobiosis, 212, 325 et seq.
Ossetes, use of soured milk, 173
Osteoclasts, 30
Ostrich, defecation of, 76
Oustalet, M., on longevity of verte-
brates, 46
Ovary, atrophy of, 26
Owls, intestinal flora of, 83
Ownership, collective, 229, 230
PARODI, on old age, 332
Parr, Thomas, 87
Parrots, duration of life, 41
scanty intestinal flora of, 79
Pasquier, Dr. du, on constipation,
67
Pasteur, discovery of lactic microbe,
105, 167
Paulsen, criticism of Kant, 314
Pensions, old age, 3, 4, 133
Pessimism, 129, 233, 234, 239, 241,
249, 266
Pessimist, study of life-history of a,
249 et seq.
Pfliiger, on longevity, 93
Phagocytes, 18, 19
Phagocytosis, examples of, 25, 37
Phalansteries, 229
Pilidium, 109 et seq.
Pitres, M., hysteric patients of, 200
Plague, 323
Plants, death of, 99, 103
Plasmodia, of Myxomycetes, 215,
216
Pleurotrocha haffkini, 112, 113
Pochon, Dr., experiments on use of
lactic bacilli, 169
Poehl, Dr., on spermine, 139, 140
Pohl, Dr., on growth of hair, 17, 18
Pono genes, as cause of sleep, 120
INDEX
Potatoes, improved by Burbank, 326
Poushkin, 236
Predestination, and plants, 103
Preyer, Dr., on Ponogenes, 120
Prichard, on longevity of negroes,
88
Productivity compared with fecund-
ity, 57. 58
Prostokwacha, 172, 176
Prolongation of life, 132 et seq.
Prothalli, life of, 99
Psychids, death of, 117
Ptolemy, fear of Hegesias' philo-
sophy, 235
Punishment, capital, 305
Purgatives, use of, in intestinal
putrefaction, 157
Putrefaction, intestinal, 151 et seq.,
161, 163, 164
QUETELET, on stature of the aged, 9
RABBIT, fecundity of, 58
Ravens, absence of putrefaction in
intestines of, 75"
Reagents, action of, in distorting
tissues, 20
Renouvier, C., on his own death,
127
Reproduction, organs of, rudiments
in, 189
Reptiles, longevity of, 50
Rhea, caeca of, 60, 77
Rhinoceros, longevity of, 54
Rhytina, 213
Riley, James, on food of Arabs, 174
Rimpau, on cultivation of rye, 326,
328
Rist and Khoury, on milk, 178
Rist, M., on ferment of Egyptian
milk, 105
Riviere, M., on defecation in
ostriches, 76, 78, 79
Robineau, Mde., 5, 6, 7, 8, 128, 159
" Roman Elegies," Goethe's, 268,
273
Rotifera, duration of life, 39
death of, 112
Roux, anti-syphilitic ointment, 146
Rovighi, on Kephir, 173
Rudimentary organs, 185 et seq.
Rye, duration of life of, 100
Rimpau 's improvement of, 326
Salpe^riere, hysterical patients at,
201
old women in the, 4, 5
Sand, M., on senile brain, 20
Sargent, on age of Sequoia, 98
Sauer-kraut, 165, 171
Sauvage, M., on atheroma, 30
Savage, on character of anthro-
poids, 193
Saxe-Weimar, Grand Duke of, and
Goethe, 274
Schaudinn, spirillum of syphilis, 31
Schiller, Goethe on, 271
Schiller, on moral conduct, 310
Schlanstedt, rye of, 326
Schmidt, on microbes in constipa-
tion, 70
Schopenhauer, 235, 247, 255, 277,
330
Schumann, a degenerate, 134
Science, and morality, 301 et seq.
Sclerosis, in the aged, 31
Sea-anemones, longevity of, 47, 48
Sea-cow, 213
Selection, medical, 134
Seneca, 132, 235
Senescence, Brown-S^quard's speci-
fic against, 139
mechanism of, 25
phagocytosis as cause of, 35
Senility, characters of, 8, 14
and digestive system, 59
theories of causation of, 15 et
seq.
Sensation, analysis of, with regard
to pain and pleasure, 243
Sense of life, 26
of obstacles, 258
Sense. organs of, rudimentary
structures in, 186, 187
"Sermon on the Mount," 321
Serums, cytotoxic, 147, 148, 149
Servants, care of, 321
Sex, and longevity, 57
Sexuality, Goethe and, 273 et seq.
and old age, 276
moral problems of, 305
Sexual organs, abnormalities of, 224
Sexual power and genius, 272
Shakespeare, quotations, 239, 307
Sheep, digestion of, 74
longevity, 55
Sight, rudimentary organs of, 189
Silos, 165
Siphonophora, 217
Skeleton, atrophy of, in the aged,
29
Sleep, and anaemia of brain, 121
and auto-intoxication, 120
and death compared, 125
342
INDEX
Sleepiness, compared with hunger,
I2 5
Sleeping-sickness, 124
Small-pox, and mortality rates, 144
Smell, analysis of, 243
Smell, rudimentary organs of sense
__ of, 187
Smoking and longevity, 93
1 Social animals, 214, 220 et seq.
Socialism, 228, 229
Tavel, M., operations on large in-
testine, 152 et seq.
Taylor, Bayard, translation of
Faust, 285
Termites, 220, 221
Testis, emulsion of, as used by
Brown-Se'quard, 139
resistance of, to senescence, 35
Thanatology, 131
Theophrastus, 132
Society v. the individual, 223 et seq. Thymol, as an intestinal antiseptic,
Society, and morality, 306 157
Thyroid, effects of extirpation of,
Sociology, dependent on biology, 231
Sollier, Dr., on sensations at death,
130
Solomon, quotation from " Eccle-
siastes," 233
Somnambulism, analysis of, 200 et
seq.
Sorbose, fermentation of, 106
Soured milk, use of, 171, 181, 182
Sparrow, fecundity of, 58
Spencer, Herbert, criticism of Kant,
310
criticism of socialism, 230
theory of morality, 316, 322,
324, 327
Spermatozoa, in old age, 35
Spermine, 139, 140
Stadelmann, on lactic acid in dia-
betes, 170
Statistics on suicide, 3
Stature, in old age, 8, 9
Stein, Mde. von, 267, 268, 273
Steller's sea-cow, 213
Stern, M., on disinfection of intes-
tine, 156
32, 33, 34
Timon of Athens, quotation from,
307
Tissier, Dr., on Bacillus bifidus, 161
on use of lactic microbes, 181
Tissier, and Martelly, on putrid
food, 164
Tobacco and longevity, 93
Tokarsky, on natural death, 126
Tolstoi, and death, 94
" Death of Ivan Ilyitch," 318
Tortoise, n, 12, 13, 51
Touch, sense of, in the blind, 257
Troubat, M., on instinctive swim-
ming, 198
Trees, age and death of, 96, 97, 98
Trypanosoma, 124
UNICELLULAR organisms, death of,
95
Urine, analysis of, in a centen-
arian, 7
Utilitarianism, 305
Stohmann, on digestion in sheep, 74 VACHEROT, criticism of Kant, 313
Stoics, 309
Stragesco, Dr., on digestion in
mammals, 63
Strasburger, on disinfection of in-
testine, 156, 157
on microbes in constipation, 70
Suicide, 3, 4, 237, 238, 265, 311
Sully-Prudhomme, definition of
morality, 303
Suprarenal capsules, and atheroma,
3 2
Swimming, instinctive power of,
197, 198, 207
Syphilis, 31, 37, 145, 146, 302, 304
Switzerland, centenarians rare in, 91
TANACOL, as an intestinal antiseptic,
156
Taoism and immortality, 137, 138
Taste, analysis of, 243
Varenetz, 172
Vascular glands, relation to old
age, 33- 34
Verworn, Max, on death in in-
fusoria, 95
Vinegar, in preservation of food,
165
Vivisection, 301
Voisin, M., criticism of neurono-
phagy, 20
Voltaire, 92, 235
Volz, on swimming power of gib-
bons, 198
WALES, Mr., quotation from Riley,
!74
Weber, Dr., on regimen for old
age, 140, 141
Weichardt, on cause of fatigue,
122, 123
INDEX
343
Weinberg, Dr., on preparation of
human serums, 150
on thyroid gland in aged, 33
Weiske, on digestion in sheep, 78
Weismann, A., on cause of old age,
15, 16
on death in infusoria, 95
on duration of life, 41, 43, 45,
51
" Weltschmerz, " in German poetry,
236
Werther, Goethe's, 263, 267
Westergaard, statistics of mor-
tality, 142, 144
Wiedersheim, on intestinal tract, 60
Wine, Goethe and, 271, 279
Wolff, J. H., Goethe's friend, 271
Women, education, 224 et seq.
YAHOURTH, use in intestinal putre-
faction, 168, 170, 175, 177, 178
Yeast, conditions of growth, 106
ZEIGAN, Dr., on adrenaline, 122
Zell, Dr., on blind persons, 259
Zelter, Goethe's friend, 265
Zola, " La Joie de Vivre," 248
Zoological Gardens of London, 51,
81
Zortay, Pierre, age of, 87
725
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